We had the good fortune of connecting with Laide Olambiwonnu and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Laide, can you talk to us a bit about the social impact of your business?
Pickytarian has baked giving back into the company’s DNA from day one. We have committed to donating 5% of sales to organizations alleviating food and shelter insecurities in our communities. In addition to being the founder of Pickytarian, I actively volunteer with Grass Roots Neighbors, a local charity in West LA that prepares and distributes food to the homeless population in the LA neighborhood. Grass Roots Neighbors is our first partner organization that will receive a portion of sales quarterly to bolster its efforts to eradicate poverty. Being able to support this organization and others like it is a responsibility that I take seriously and cherish. We plan to expand to supporting 3 organizations annually thus providing meals and shelter to our most vulnerable in the United States of America and beyond.

What should our readers know about your business?
I’ve been a picky eater all my life; hence the name, Pickytarian! 🙃

Pickytarian stemmed from a desire to elevate an experience that is often riddled with single-use plastics, outdated designs, and subpar offerings. While we encourage everyone to reuse and minimize waste as much as possible, we understand that there will be occasions where that isn’t possible. In those instances, we encourage you to be picky and more selective about your choices by using our products.

Pickytarian creates dinnerware products that are eye-catching, colorful, sturdy, compostable, and disposable. Our tableware products are meant for those special occasions where it’s a huge hassle to use the fine dinnerware but you are also conscious enough not to use toxic plastic or flimsy paperwares. Pickytarian products are made from renewable resources such as bamboo and sugarcane pulp. In addition, we donate 5% of sales to organizations working to alleviate food & shelter insecurities in our various communities.

It has been difficult but I’m proud that I bootstrapped this business from idea through launch. I exercised the fiscal discipline across various touch points and was responsible for all aspects of the business including: product design, website development, manufacturing, supply chain and logistics, marketing, communications etc. I’ve always prided myself in being a quick learner so I’m proud that I’ve been able to pick up skills necessary to understand every aspect of the business.

Nonetheless, being a business owner is no easy feat and being a small business with limited resources is even tougher. Quite frankly, it’s hard but it’s been a worthwhile journey so far. What gets me through the tough days is knowing that I’m fulfilling my purpose. That belief in addition to meditation, prayer, and exercise has been a lifesaver.

I want everyone to know that when they support Pickytarian, they are supporting a small business, a woman-owned and black-owned business. More importantly, they are supporting a conscious brand that gives back to the community by donating 5% of sales (not profits, sales!!!).

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Whenever friends visit Los Angeles, they get the one-day car tour. Basically, we do all the touristy things from the comfort of my car (stops are chosen by the friends), I’d take them to Beverly Hills (Rodeo Drive), West Hollywood Sunset Strip, Griffith Park, Hollywood Sign, Walk of Fame (gotta get out for that), DTLA.

Favorite Spots to hang out: LACMA, Leimert Park, Griffith Observatory, The Broad

Food: Pann’s Restaurant in Westchester for Breakfast; Benny’s Tacos for Taco Tuesday; Scopa Italian Roots for Italian; Redbird in DTLA for brunch or dinner; Otium in DTLA for special celebrations!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’d like to dedicate this shoutout to my parents for all their sacrifices. They had the foresight to immigrate into the United States so that my siblings and I could have better opportunities. They were entrepreneurs back in Nigeria and I guess you could say I caught the bug from them. I owe my entrepreneurship endeavours to them and I hope I can continue to make them proud.

Website: https://pickytarian.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pickytarianinc/

Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/laideo

Other: https://m.ink

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutLA is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.