In The Catering Kitchen With Serendipity Catering!
For our September Spotlight, we caught up with Laura Zaspel of Serendipity Catering in Denver, CO. Read on for great info and tips!
Tell us about your business.
Laura and Todd Zaspel owned and operated “Laura’s Mountain Bakery” in Nederland, Colorado from 1996 – 2002. “Some of Colorado’s finest baked goods are found in Nederland …at a bakery and café now called Laura’s…” reported the Denver Post on Jan. 20, 1999.
The bakery was sold in 2002 and Serendipity Catering was born. Laura is Serendipity’s chief executive officer. She has two master’s degrees from the University of Denver and leads the business side of the company. Laura provides expertise in sales, event planning and business administration, to name a few. She is a green event specialist and spearheads the company’s mission to be environmentally-friendly.
Executive Chef Todd has a degree in International Business from Mankato State University (Minnesota). Todd brings his love of international travel to Serendipity menus, and inspires his staff through his stories of travel through Tuscany, Provence, Bordeaux and San Sebastian.
Serendipity Catering is a full-service catering company serving some of Denver’s best corporate clients and private individuals. We custom create every menu to our client’s specifications. The “pride of Serendipity” is not only our food but our service staff; we are known for stellar customer service from the initial conversation to the event itself to the follow-up with our clients.
What brought you to begin using Total Party Planner?
We were expanding so rapidly we couldn’t keep up with the requests, so we knew we had better find a great software application to help us out. We were impressed with TPP from
phase.seeing them at the 2010 Catersource convention, and took about a year to review several packages. We considered price, customer service, and of course the software features. In the end, the TPP was the winner, particularly based on the friendly and knowledgeable customer service representatives we had interacted with during the “shopping around”
What is your favorite program feature in Total Party Planner?
Let’s see….one feature….my favorite…..that’s tough! Favorite feature – the flexibility to add custom notations such as the color coded system on the calendar. We can add our own key of event statuses so we use the calendar view very strategically.
How has Total Party Planner helped your business?
We respond much faster to client requests. There is no way we could handle the volume we now have with our old paper and files system.
How did you get started catering?
My background is in energy efficiency and renewable energy technology. I worked for the Clinton Administration at the US Department of Energy in the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Technology. I met my husband-to-be in 1998, an accomplished chef, and the rest is history!
What sets your company apart from others in your area?
We are the only catering company in Denver to have the “Certifiably Green” designation. We have a unique blend of my green technology background with my husband’s culinary background. We enhance a company’s brand image through event planning and menu planning that emphasizes local and sustainable choices.
What do customers expect when doing business with you?
A lot of fun! I am like a proud mother, but I think all of our staff are the funniest and most intelligent people I have ever met! My husband, the Founding Chef and co-owner, sets the bar pretty high with constant humor in the kitchen, and the rest of the staff definitely keep up! And of course great food – our culinary team is some of the most dedicated and– our culinary team is composed of some of the most dedicated and knowledgeable chefs in Colorado.