Jamila Crawford Pécou brought her vegan dishes to a customer appreciation brunch. She had no idea this simple gesture would completely reroute her life. The food she prepared for her friend’s boutique event sparked an unexpected entrepreneurial journey. What began as casual home cooking transformed into a thriving catering business.
Pécou wasn’t a trained chef when she started. She was a mom who had embraced veganism nine years earlier. She simply enjoyed recreating her favorite foods in plant-based versions at home. Her natural talent for flavor and presentation would soon capture attention far beyond her immediate circle.
Self-Taught Vegan Chef Becomes Celebrity Favorite
“My dishes would be the first to disappear,” Pécou tells BLACK ENTERPRISE. Friends immediately noticed the quality and taste of her creations. They asked if she would consider catering future brunches regularly. Their enthusiasm convinced her to take a chance on her culinary skills.
She launched a catering company in 2004 initially serving friends and their networks. Her dishes became an instant hit among early clients. Word spread rapidly throughout Atlanta’s creative and entertainment communities. Within four years, she had become a quiet force in vegan catering.
Serving Plant-Based Cuisine to Erykah Badu and Lupita Nyong’o
Pécou’s client list soon included major celebrities seeking elevated vegan options. She served vegan delights to stars like Erykah Badu and Common. Actress Lupita Nyong’o also enjoyed her plant-based creations. These high-profile clients validated her self-taught culinary expertise and unique approach.
Her success came before plant-based eating became mainstream. Pécou was at the forefront of the vegan movement as a trendsetter. She built her reputation when finding quality vegan catering remained challenging. Her timing and talent positioned her perfectly for the plant-based boom that followed.
Creative Spirit Spans Fashion, Design, and Travel
The vegan cookbook author identifies as a creative at heart. Her passions extend far beyond cooking into multiple artistic realms. Fashion, interior design, gardening, and travel all capture her imagination. Pécou has never confined herself to a single lane or identity.
Her brand EARTHCANDYARTS reflects this multifaceted creative approach. The umbrella company allows her to explore various interests authentically. She refuses to limit her entrepreneurial vision to one industry. This philosophy empowers other women to embrace their own diverse passions.
Planning Restorative Getaways for Women Seeking Balance
After years of organizing trips for friends, Pécou formalized her travel expertise. She transformed her love of exploration into a new business venture. Now she curates trips for women needing space to rest and reset. Her retreats provide opportunities for self-rediscovery and restoration.
RE operates as Pécou’s travel business under the EARTHCANDYARTS brand. She curates culinary experiences and activities native to each destination. Wellness components form the foundation of every retreat. Women on missions to restore balance find sanctuary in her carefully planned experiences.
From Family Trip Planner to Professional Travel Curator
Pécou earned recognition within her circle as the designated trip planner. She would design complete itineraries while family and friends simply paid and showed up. Her organizational skills and creative vision made every trip memorable. During a photoshoot with her husband on one adventure, everything changed.
One photo came back looking like a professional travel advertisement. That single image sparked her interest in planning trips for others commercially. She realized her planning talent could serve women beyond her immediate network. The photograph became the catalyst for her travel business launch.
RE Travel Brand Embraces Renewal and Transformation
“I thought about what the name could be and came back up with ‘RE,'” she explains. The name carries significant meaning across multiple dimensions. “Re has so much to it. Reboot, refresh, restart.” Each variation reflects the transformative journey she creates for participants.
She schedules trips strategically during equinoxes and solstices each season. Retreats coincide with seasonal changes to support intention-setting rituals. Participants can align their goals with natural cycles and transitions. This timing adds spiritual depth to the travel experience itself.
Curating Meaningful Experiences Across Global Destinations
Pécou has led women to diverse international locations. Her retreats have visited Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. She has also curated experiences in Indonesia and Tanzania. Each destination offers unique cultural immersion and personal growth opportunities.
“During the trips, we set out intentions for the week, we have an opening ceremony to invoke change,” she adds. Every retreat includes spiritual components before sunrise. These practices create sacred space for reflection and transformation. Participants leave feeling renewed and reconnected to themselves.
Navigating Multiple Identities as Entrepreneur and Caregiver
Pécou inspires women to embrace multiple identities simultaneously. She demonstrates success as an entrepreneur, wife, mother, and grandmother. Studies show that women entrepreneurs often struggle with dual identities. Navigating traditional roles alongside business ownership creates unique challenges.
Women frequently struggle balancing expectations of caregiving with entrepreneurial demands. This tension can affect business performance, work-life balance, and personal confidence. Pécou’s journey proves that women can forge their own paths. She refuses to sacrifice any aspect of her multifaceted identity.
Women’s Entrepreneurship Day Celebrates Trailblazers
As the world celebrates Women’s Entrepreneurship Day, Pécou exemplifies possibility. She serves as a reminder that success doesn’t require choosing one path. Women can pursue multiple passions without sacrificing family or personal fulfillment. Her example empowers others to reject limiting definitions of success.
Between being a wife, mother to four, and grandmother to three, she continues creating. She constantly thinks about what entrepreneurial venture comes next. Her energy and vision seem boundless despite her many responsibilities. She proves that age and family obligations don’t diminish creative ambition.
Expanding Travel Business Through Storytelling and Recipes
Pécou plans to expand her travel business through new creative projects. She intends to write another book documenting her global travels. The book will combine stories, recipes, and photographs from her journeys. This project merges her culinary expertise with her travel curation experience.
The upcoming book will offer readers both inspiration and practical guidance. Recipes will reflect the international cuisines she’s explored and adapted. Stories will capture the transformative power of intentional travel. Photographs will transport readers to the beautiful destinations she’s discovered.
Building an Ecosystem of Creativity and Empowerment
EARTHCANDYARTS functions as more than a business—it’s an ecosystem. Pécou has created a platform supporting all her creative interests. The brand allows her to serve women across multiple touchpoints. Food, travel, wellness, and design all intersect under this umbrella.
Her approach challenges traditional business models focused on specialization. Instead, she demonstrates how interconnected passions can strengthen each other. Her catering experience enhances her travel curation through culinary components. Her design sensibility elevates every retreat’s aesthetic and atmosphere.
Self-Taught Success Story Encourages Women Everywhere
Pécou’s journey from home cook to celebrity caterer inspires aspiring entrepreneurs. She proves that formal training isn’t always necessary for success. Passion, dedication, and willingness to learn can overcome credential gaps. Her self-taught expertise rivals that of professionally trained chefs.
Her story particularly resonates with mothers and caregivers considering entrepreneurship. She started her business while raising children and managing household responsibilities. She didn’t wait for perfect conditions or complete freedom. Instead, she built her empire incrementally around her existing life commitments.
