Belinda Manfo is a London based mother of one. She’s also the founder of Marli’s kitchen— A vegan eatery named after her twelve year old daughter. Marli’s Kitchen is renown for it’s vegan fried chicken and DIY vegan meal kits that are available for nationwide delivery.

Belinda is the epitome of perseverance. Keep reading to hear her inspiring story of what it means to be a pioneer and how she helped her business overcome the setbacks associated with the lockdown restrictions.

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What did you do before you started Marli’s kitchen?

I used to work in the fashion industry as a buyer. It was something that I always wanted to do. After University, I got a job working for one of the biggest high street stores. I worked my way up to a buyer. Then in 2008, I became a mum and that was my best job.

How did becoming a Mother change things?

I got a lot out of being a mum and I wanted to dial back on work and spend more time with my daughter. And also, that was when I really started thinking more seriously about becoming an entrepreneur and starting my own business.

When Marli came along I started working part-time. I worked a three day week in a little company. It was still in fashion buying but it just meant that I could be a mum. And, around the time Marli was born my mum got quite sick so I see it as a blessing that I was able to spend time with her as well. She was quite ill with cancer. And about five or six years after that my dad was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. So, I was like a carer for him.

What sparked your interest in becoming vegan?

It started when my mum got sick. We only knew she had cancer a week before she died because she wouldn’t tell us. And, she had pancreatic cancer so it’s one of those where the transition from her being sick to her passing away was quite quick.  It was around that time that I went down a real deep dive looking into things you can do to not get cancer.

My mum, she didn’t smoke, she didn’t drink alcohol, she was relatively healthy, she made sure she ate her vegetables. It just didn’t make sense to me that she would get cancer. I sort of just did a really deep dive into what things you can do to prevent cancer or give your body a fighting chance to beat cancer. A lot of the information that I found, like scientific information, really pointed to the benefits of a vegan diet. So, this is the stuff that I wish I could have spoken to my mum about when she was alive. It was then that I went vegan and really started trying to persuade my dad to eat more vegetables.

Why did you start Marli’s Kitchen?

My Dad passed away in 2017 and Marli at the time was about ten. So, she was a lot more independent and able to entertain herself. So, it was almost like my time for me to do something that I’d always dreamed of and that was starting my own business. So, I started laying the groundwork to do that.

Why did you decide to start a vegan business? Why not a fashion related business?

It was something that I was really interested in and really passionate about. I’d read so much about it. When I was thinking about what business I could start for myself, it had to be focused around this new thing that I was really interested in. And also, a gap that I felt that I could fill. For people like me who grew up eating meat everyday and might be craving an alternative like vegan fried chicken. So, that’s where the brainchild for Marli’s kitchen came along.

When did you launch Marli’s Kitchen?

I did my first market in February 2018. I can honestly say it was one of the most exciting and best things that I have ever done. That first market, it was snowing. I think it was like one-degree. Marli was with me and my partner, Danny. They helped me set up and sort out my wares.

And, customers came in the snow and they bought. It was so exciting just to see everything I’d planned and worked on come to fruition and customers liking what I did. And from then, it was such a buzz that I knew that I wanted to keep on doing it.

How did you balance your business with employment?

I was still working part-time at the time. So, I committed to doing the market twice a month. The more I did it, the more people knew I was going to be there and they’d ask for me. I built up a really nice, loyal set of customers.

And then there was a festival that they did in Tottenham, that was crazy. They had a stage there and so many people came down and I finally made quite a bit of money. Then I was like, “OK, I think I’m on to something.”

So, I kept plodding away; still very much part-time. Then I did a massive festival in Walthamstow. It was over two days and quite a big pitch fee. When I sat down and did my numbers I was like, “In order for this to work, I need to sell hundreds of portions a day.” I make all the seitan myself (the mock meat that I sell) so I had to make like five hundred portions.

It was a bit of a baptism of fire. Everything that could go wrong went wrong but that was the market when I came back and I’d made a lot of money. That festival allowed me to buy my van, upgrade my equipment and from there I decided that next summer I was going to focus on getting into bigger festivals.             

At what point did you decide to go full-time?

There’s this company called Kerb. They have this incubator scheme where they give you a pitch in their lunchtime market during the week and they mentor you. In August 2019, I got asked to be part of Kerb. I then had to make the decision to do Marli’s Kitchen full-time because it was during the week. I wasn’t able to work during the week at my job so I decided to quit my job and do Kerb during the week and then do markets at the weekend. It was all Marli’s kitchen from then.

You’re not doing lunch time markets at the moment. How has your business adapted?

There is no lunchtime market trade in central London now. Everybody is working from home. Lockdown has completely killed street food markets in central London during the week. As you can imagine, I was like, “Oh no!” I remember in March I was frantically trying to get back into what I was doing before I started Marli’s Kitchen but no one was hiring. So, I was like, “Ok, this is my bed. What can I do?” When it happened, I was really quite quickly able to be like, “Ok, what else can I do?”

And, do you remember going to the shops when all the shelves were bare and people were fighting over toilet roll and there were massive queues outside? I was like, “Well, I know there’s a demand for vegan meat because I can’t find any in the shops. And my speciality is making it.” So that’s when I decided to sell my vegan fried chicken directly to customers and deliver it to their homes.

So, I put a shout out on my Instagram and said, “Guys, I’m thinking of doing this, what do you think?” I had so many comments coming back like, “Yes, yes, do it, do it, I’ll buy, I’ll buy I’ll buy!” So, the next week I just basically said, “Everyone DM me. This is what I’m offering.”  It was just this one thing. A six pack of vegan fried chicken. I was like, “It’s chilled and ready to go into your freezer for you to eat at your leisure. You’ve been craving vegan fried chicken, I’ve got you.” I had loads of orders come through from that.

What month was that?

That was the week after lockdown.

You were on the ball!

Yeah, because I needed the money. Like I said the markets had pretty much gone dead since February and it was like, “I need income, I need some money coming in.” I wasn’t eligible for furlough. I wasn’t eligible for any grant. So, I was just like, “Ok’, let me just get on it and be positive about it so that anything that I put my mind to is going to be successful.” So, I gave it a good shot. Customers that I knew, I sent them a DM and said, “I can drop off some food if you like.” I was just being as proactive as possible in terms of drumming up business.

It was such a blessing because it kept me busy. I was cooking two days a week. I got to drive around to drop off food. I actually got to interact with other people.  And, because I was just like, “I want money,” I was prepared to drive anywhere. If you wanted to place an order with me, I’d go there and drop the food off for you. I literally drove like thousands of miles in a very short space of time. And everything just snowballed from there. I then went into meal kits to widen the offer and I’ve not looked back really.

What’s something you’re proud of?

It’s a whole new thing for me, selling food online. It was born pretty much in 2020.  Who would have thought that mainstream businesses would be sending meals through the post. It was not a thing. It became a thing in 2020 and I was part of that. And, I was one of the pioneers really. I jumped on that quite quickly. That’s definitely something that I’m proud of.

It meant that subsequent lockdowns people had me at the forefront of their minds. Because they were like, “I remember Marli’s Kitchen. That was our special treat over lockdown.” So many people were like, “You were like the beacon of light in lockdown.” I was their special dinner treat or weekend treat for them to look forward to.

With me, one of the things that was driving me, was knowing that I was a pioneer. Knowing that I was a part of something new, knowing that I was leading the way for people to come behind me.

Belinda Manfo

What drives you?

With me, one of the things that was driving me, was knowing that I was a pioneer. Knowing that I was a part of something new, knowing that I was leading the way for people to come behind me. That really kept me going. Knowing that I’m like one of the first companies out there to sell vegan fried chicken on the streets. I’m so proud of that; so, so, so proud of that.

I think that’s definitely one of my top pieces of advice. Your business is going to take up so much of your head space. It has to be something that you can see the why in. There has to be a really good why. If you work on something you’re passionate about it won’t feel so much like work.

I’ve seen you trading alongside your daughter at markets, what do you hope she gets out of it?

I think I’m showing her a really good work ethic because come rain come shine, if you know you’ve got to do something, you do it. Sometimes, the day comes and I’m like, “I don’t wanna go.” And, then I shake myself and I’m like “Get on with it!” And, I suppose she is my inspiration because I want to be a good role model for her.

And, nothing good in life comes easy. I don’t think I’ve ever had anything that I truly valued without having to work for it. And, I think that’s definitely what I’ve got out of Marli’s Kitchen. The satisfaction of knowing you worked your ass off and the good things you will get out of that hard work are well deserved and you’ve earned it.

Marli’s Kitchen: https://www.marliskitchen.co.uk