Food Industry Rallies Together to Raise over $1.5M for Maui
From Day 1, Matthew and I knew that we wanted E-Fish to be a force for good. Good for people and the planet was what we aspired to become. We’ve always punched above our weight, but what we were part of this weekend was leaps and bounds beyond anything we could’ve dreamed. I’ve learned that being part of events like this is way more impactful than just some Wine and Food Festival or music festival. Not even because of the ROI, it’s all about where we want to see our dollars go!
Marketing at events is always a bit of a crapshoot. You don’t know if it will be worth it, so why not always make it worth it by supporting a cause you care about?
We were invited by Guy Fieri’s Foundation to support their Chefs for Maui event with Oyster shucking and caviar bumps. On Saturday, we were prepping in the kitchen with every chef imaginable. I mean, look at this lineup.
People are always surprised when I tell them how easy it is for Matthew and I to say yes to a charity event or donating to a good cause. As founders/partners, we’ve always been aligned on this one simple thing.
The dream is to create a sustainable business that gives back to the community around us, period.
It’s not all about money in our pockets, it’s about leaving our community better than we found it. Step one is building a business that’s healthy enough to sustain this, but if you can do it, then supporting your community will always be the right path forward.
I forget his exact words, but Guy Fieri basically told us that this was the most important thing he has ever done in his career. Not because of the money, but because of his friends who rallied behind him when he wanted to put this thing together to help Maui. Chefs supporting chefs. Plus, most of his friends are hard to pin down! Everyone from Taylor Sheridan (creator of Yellowstone) to Portugal the Man, and Michael Mina.
In the case of this event, Maui has always had a special place in my heart at E-Fish. Lahaina was where I went fishing in the ocean for the first time. My dad and I went fishing when I was 10 years old and I caught my first saltwater fish, the wahoo! I was hooked ever since. We knew we needed to contribute to Maui, but find the right places to do so was difficult. We knew our friend Jose Andres and World Central Kitchen would be there immediately, so we donated to WCK all proceeds from the sale of our Hawaiian products. We wanted to do more, which is where the Chefs for Maui event was perfect.
We’re honored to have been part of such a transformational event. And thanks to Guy and the rest of the chefs for letting Matthew and I cook alongside all of you! As a member of 1% For the Planet, we’ve been engrained from day 1 to think this way. It’s easy to day you’ll start donating once your wealthy and sucessful. It may be harder, but the better path is to build it into your business model so it’s business as usual.
Cheers,
E-Fish
