Maggie shrugs. “I think we need to have the production capabilities in place before we go out and try to recruit more business. I guess it’s a chicken-or-egg thing. What doyouthink, Ginny?”
I think about the question. I’m not sure it’s my place to say. But they asked.
“Who do you plan to talk to?”
“Restaurants, a family that has a fleet of food trucks, and another Texas company that does jams and jellies and salsas.”
“Then yes, I agree you need to be able to provide them with the crops right away if they say yes.”
The sisters nod their agreement.
“It’s a gamble,” I point out. “You’ll be putting a lot of money into these indoor farms without certain contracts in place to recoup your money.”
“But we believe that with the right marketing we can get those companies on board easily.”
I nod. “I agree. You are both delightful, your farm is already impressive, the women-owned and operated angle is unique and interesting, and adding in the green energy and ability to produce any crop year-round, you could have an advantage over other suppliers.”
The sisters exchange a big, pleased grin.
I’m happy they’re happy. They are not a part of our ten-farm goal for the year. We’ve already hit that. In the past week, we’ve contracted the additional four farms in New Mexico and four more in Sapphire Falls. These ladies are just icing on top of thecake. They’re one of four farms that are turning into icing on the cake.
Things have been moving fast, but it’s all been good. The Albright brothers' investment has enabled us to exceed our initial goals. Everyone with IAS and IES is thrilled.
“Well, we don’t need to sign anything today,” I say with a laugh. “There’s a lot more information to share.”
Maggie waves her hand. “This is exactly what we want. We want to be the full fresh-food supplier for the businesses we work with. With what you’ve told us today and what Sofia has already shared, we’re good.”
Wait a second. I frown. “Sofia Romero?”
Maggie nods. “Sofia is who talked us into contacting you. Didn’t you know?
I didn’t know. That’s interesting. “No, I guess I missed that part.” Did Graham and Everett leave that out on purpose?
Or maybe they figured it didn’t matter. I was coming to this meeting with Maggie and Krista no matter what. And it’s great that Sofia got them interested in us. The more our current clients tell others about our programs, the better. There’s really no better marketing.
“Sofia and I were friends in college,” Maggie says. “She’s been one of our biggest cheerleaders and called almost a month ago, telling us we should talk with you. We’ve just gotten to it.”
“Which we regret now,” Krista says.
“Well, I’m thrilled to hear that Sofia is so happy that she’s talking about us.”
Obviously, it’s more than that. Sofia did a fantastic job in New York, helping Margot and Graham with the Albrights.
In fact, from the sounds of it, she was key in getting the Albrights to go ahead with the funding.
Which means Sofia is a lot more than a client. In fact, Graham and Everett offered her a position as a marketing consultant after that meeting. And rightly so.
“Does this mean that Sofia didnottell you the other reason we wanted to talk to you?” Maggie asks.
I shake my head. “I haven’t talked to Sofia about you at all. I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s fine. Obviously, we want to make the pitch ourselves.”
“Pitch?”
The women exchange a smile before turning their smiles on me.
“We want to offer you a job,” Maggie says.
