Interview #1 - Entrepreneur

Sallie Peterkin – co-owner of Cornucopia Restaurant in Cashiers, North Carolina – welcomed me into her quaint, but empty cheese shop as various construction projects took place outside on the “porch” and in the kitchen. On the wall in the Cheese Shop hangs old blackboard on which the history of the building is displayed. Although the property has been occupied by Cornucopia for the past 35 years, the board explains that the building has been around for much longer and was once a stop for travelers with thirsty livestock, a post office (,several other things which I can’t really remember), and – most recently – a deli called The Purple Onion.

She began by filling me in on the history of Cornucopia: “My husband [Brian] and his brother [Scott] started it 35 years ago. He was actually attending WCU at the time and was probably 19 years old; his brother was about 3 years older. Basically the owner of The Purple Onion [the deli that used to be there] decided he didn’t want to lease the building anymore. So he called Brian and Scott and said, “Why don’t y’all start a restaurant here? So we did.” Cornucopia started out quite small, only serving lunch– the porch was tiny and uncovered, (which made rain an absolute disaster since seating was primarily outdoors) and there was only one waitress. As time went by, they added on to the kitchen, expanded and added a roof to the porch, and began doing dinners. At this point, the owners realized that the business wasn’t bringing in quite enough to really support 2 households, so Mr. Peterkin moved onto another full time job while Scott ran the restaurant. In 2004, Scott passed away, leaving the business to Mr. and Mrs. Peterkin’s children – who were not old enough to run the restaurant themselves.  Mr. Peterkin was still working full time, so Mrs. Peterkin started working full time at the restaurant.

Cornucopia now includes a wine shop and gourmet cheese shop, and normally seats around 400 people for lunch each day. And in light of new laws which permit the sale of alcohol by the drink, a bar is being added to their large outdoor dining area/porch. They are open for approximately 9 months out of the year (since seating is outdoor) for breakfast/brunch, lunch, and dinner.  

I then asked Mrs. Peterkin if she’d had prior experience in or any intentions to enter the restaurant industry. “Well, I was a waitress here when I was going to Western. But I actually was into horses and had a horseback-riding school before Scott died. “

She continued explaining that a similar theme of fortuitousness has shown itself in a variety of ways when I asked about the strategic plan for future growth. “Our biggest downfall is that we think of things and just do them! We were just like, ‘let’s open a wine shop’…and then we did it! We have ideas and we just go for them!” Over the course of our interview, Mrs. Peterkin made it very clear that they are not just “idea people”, but that they are doers. Rather than daydreaming about wild things to do with their business,, they put their ideas into action (what a concept!). Perhaps these aren’t downfalls so much as they are contributors to Cornucopia’s success.

I found this kind of entrepreneurial spontaneity quite refreshing! Although my entrepreneurship training here at Western has put a large emphasis on creating a highly strategic business plan, the Peterkins serve as an example of a business that has been extremely successful without the plan. Rather, they allow their past mistakes to serve as lessons for the future and make it a point not only to come up with exciting new ideas, but also to actually implement them (in a tangible way). This isn’t to say that an entrepreneur doesn’t need a solid, thought-out business plan – in fact, a business plan is essential for pretty much any business (obviously there are exceptions), but I think  the fact that they don’t have one – yet they’re doing so well – indicates that they’re clearly doing something right!

Not just something, but many things! One factor that I noticed seems to play a significant role in their success is the well-established reputation they’ve maintained within the community. After only chatting briefly with the owners, it became obvious to me that these are super friendly people, and their warm mentality radiates throughout their business.  Not only do locals love and support Cornucopia, but the owners are very aware of this fact; they know who their repeat customers are and how their customers perceive their business. For example, they have a “legacy menu” which includes items that have been on the menu since the beginning.

Above all, this interview reminded me that entrepreneurs inevitably face many unexpected challenges, and that hard work, open-mindedness, and personality are the keys to turning obstacles into opportunities and adapting to change.