Launchpad: From Recipe to Retail

In this workshop Cherryll LaFond will be discussing the steps of food entrepreneurship, from transforming a recipe into a sellable product, to navigating packaging design, manufacturing, and marketing strategies. Cherryll, Founder of Caribbean Style Home Products, will walk participants through the journey she herself has taken — turning her grandmother’s recipes into a thriving retail brand that now serves as an inspiration for aspiring food business owners.

Caribbean Style Home Products is a Black woman–owned business rooted in Caribbean heritage and family tradition. Built on the flavors and culture of the Caribbean, the company highlights the importance of authenticity and community connection, while embracing the business practices needed to compete in today’s marketplace. With products that capture both heritage and innovation, Cherryll has successfully bridged cultural storytelling with entrepreneurial growth.

Over the years, Caribbean Style Home Products has partnered with local markets, small business incubators, and regional retailers to expand distribution and visibility. Through this growth, Cherryll has supported emerging entrepreneurs by sharing lessons on food safety compliance, branding, pricing, and consumer engagement. She believes strongly that food entrepreneurship can create wealth and opportunity for communities often left out of mainstream business development.

The company has developed and tested a range of products — from sauces and marinades to value-added goods — all designed using sustainable practices, careful sourcing, and attention to consumer demand. Cherryll prioritizes accessibility by ensuring her products are available at multiple price points and by mentoring other food entrepreneurs to think strategically about their business models.

As part of her broader mission, Cherryll focuses on empowering aspiring entrepreneurs to see their recipes and food traditions not just as meals, but as pathways to ownership, cultural preservation, and financial independence. By teaching practical tools — like packaging design, co-packing processes, shelf stability, and marketing — alongside the mindset of persistence and creativity, she offers a complete roadmap to take a food product from kitchen to store shelf.

Caribbean Style Home Products currently continues to grow in reach while remaining grounded in its original mission: celebrating culture, empowering new entrepreneurs, and proving that food can be both a source of joy and an engine of economic progress.

Host or Publisher The Lab at ConnCORP