Marisol Torres Soto
Marisol started her business through a combination of crafts and confidence.
Janae keeps cooking — even when things get tough.
Fried Lasagna Mama | New York, NY
A Restaurateur With Deep Roots
Chef Janae has roots in the food business. In the 60s, her late grandmother, Katherine, ran a restaurant in Harlem. This influenced Janae to pursue dual degrees in Culinary Arts and Food service Management, and in late 2019 she joined Skysthelimit.org with a solid plan for launching her business. She met with the Skysthelimit program team and was matched with a mentor, and within just a few days, she was already making sales of her mouth-watering fried lasagna.
She continued to work with her mentor John to plan her next steps to grow her business.
“I've been mentoring entrepreneurs since 2004 and I know Janae has what it takes to be successful. She has a great product, a budding raving fan base, and more than anything, a great approach. She works hard and has a fantastic product that you can tell she believes in (that her customers seem to love too). Janae is the kind of entrepreneur who I believe would be successful at whatever she does, but for this enterprise, I believe she ticks all the boxes.”
- John Coleman | Sky’s the Limit Volunteer
March 2020
As the COVID-19 pandemic shut down New York, many entrepreneurs were forced to shut down their businesses. Janae, like many, wasn’t sure what she should do. With some encouragement, she decided she could fill a critical need in her city by delivering comfort and sustenance. What could be more comforting the lasagna? Fried lasagna delivered to your door!
“Prior to the Coronavirus pandemic, I just simply kept at working my business selling my Fried Lasagna for pick-up and delivery as normal and promoting every week on my social accounts. But after, I found myself at a standstill for about a week and unsure of what to do. Thankfully, after having a supportive talk with Danee [from Sky’s the Limit] as well as my mom, who also gave me great encouragement, I realized the show must go on no matter the circumstance. ‘See this through,’ I said to myself and I did just that.
I promoted even more and assured customers that I'm still open if they'd like to make an order. The following month, I made six times more in sales than the previous month! After that, I realized having fortitude is extremely vital in entrepreneurship. Whether things turn for the better or worse you must keep pushing and see it through, you owe yourself that in the least.
Sky’s the Limit has been by far the best guide, resource and professional help I have gotten since before even launching my business. I have trust in my mentor, John. It's not just that he believes in what my business is and how far it can go, but he believes in me and having him as a mentor has been great. Having the support of the members and knowing they're an email away if you need advice or marketing strategies is pretty cool. I'm a lucky lady!!”
If you’re in NYC and want to get Fried Lasagna Mama delivered to you, go to the Fried Lasagna Mama website to learn more. And if you’re not in her delivery area, but wish you were, give her a follow on Instagram!