Yes, that’s what she said to me! Glass of wine in hand and a look of awe on her face. I couldn’t deny it but I’d never been called that before!
You see, I was at a friend’s party a few years ago somewhere in Athens, Greece where I was living. The hostess had introduced me to her friend saying, “This is Gilly, the one who does the lovely catering.”
And that’s when her friend exclaimed, “Oh you’re the Sausage Lady!”
I had all manner of aspirations when I was a youngster, but that wasn’t quite the notoriety I had imagined.
No eggs for me thanks!
Let me take you back to the small Shropshire farm where it all started. In my early years, it became apparent that I had a very fussy palette. I wouldn’t eat egg in any form despite their abundance from our industrious hens. I couldn’t abide mushrooms, cream or mustard and the ‘pork brawn’ my grandad ate actually made me queasy.
However, once I started cookery lessons at secondary school, I discovered that I was quite a natural. Funnily enough though, the only career path offered to me was that of secretary. Over the years, having obtained a posh diploma, I moved up through the ranks to Office Manager in London’s West End.
After moving the young family to Athens in 2002, it quickly became apparent that there were no M&S or Waitrose ready meals available. No such concept even existed there. In traditional Greek style, every woman of the household would visit the regular street markets (laiiki) and buy only the freshest produce. Then they would return to their kitchens and create a wholesome meal from scratch. Every single day of their lives.
Many ex-patriots (or ex-pats as we were known) were horrified at the cookery burden which they had unwittingly taken on when their husbands had been seconded to Athens for a couple of years.
This is when monumental inspiration struck!
I saw the lack and I saw the opportunity to create something that I already knew people wanted.
My little boys were excited beyond belief about my idea to create ready meals for the hungry and fed up ex-pats. Rather sweetly, they thought they would be manning a little stall on the pavement on our street and sell to passersby! My plan was slightly more sophisticated however.
Perhaps my farming background gave me a practical and ‘can do’ approach because I wasn’t daunted by the hard work my new venture demanded. Putting myself ‘out there’ as an expert in this field did, however, force me to be courageous. A dithering cook does not a great cake make!
With no formal training but with bags of energy and big ideas, I very quickly became established. In the run up to Christmas, I was asked if I could make any traditional British goodies.
So I dug out my old cookery books and made endless Christmas cakes, tons of Christmas puddings and mountains of mince pies. I made every single one from scratch, stirring great vats of mincemeat filling every day. One year I handmade over 1,600 of them. To my chagrin, I sold the very last six one Christmas Eve to a desperate friend who had very naughtily eaten her batch before the big day! I’m not sure the boys have yet forgiven me…
Then I saw an even bigger gap in the market – the humble British sausage. Within days, I took ownership of a shiny sausage machine from the UK along with a load of natural collagen casings. The testing began; not just the tasting but the testing of my patience! Teaching myself to make great strings of unwieldy sausages is perhaps one of the more bizarre things I have ever done.
During my six years in Athens, I literally made tens of thousands of British sausages for my customers. Looking back, I can’t quite believe it now! That’s why, when I met new people there, my reputation went before me.
And that leads me back to you. In my experience, no two Osteopaths work the same way. Your talents are so unique and diverse that you work as individually as a cook. If I gave you the ingredients for a simple cake, no two would end up the same.
You can use this to your advantage in your marketing. What is unique only to you? What makes you different to other Osteopaths or health professionals in your area?
This isn’t about your ego (which is Greek for ‘I’) because the greatest quality I see in Osteopaths is humility. It is purely about standing out from the crowd and letting your unique skills be seen.
With no formal training and with just a few big and crazy ideas, I quickly built a reputation in Athens as ‘The Sausage Lady’! People came from far and wide to buy handmade British sausages, curries, beef wellingtons and hot cross buns. I did that by word of mouth only.
Capitalise on your strengths and talk about them, both in your marketing and face to face. Your enthusiasm will shine through and bring you even more business of the type you excel in.
What’s the one thing you can do today to educate and inform your community about how you can help them? Remember, most people don’t even know you exist or know what you do!
Create the demand and people will come.
