My name is Shernell Prescott and I am entrepreneur, wife, and mother of two beautiful girls. My daughters have served as an inspiration to continue pursuing my dream of owning my own business, despite the many obstacles I have faced. As a native of Barbados, I first migrated to the US in 1990 after completing my studies in the field of Hotel and Business Management. Much to my surprise, however, the American dream was not as easy to obtain as I had expected.
I was forced to seek work in the retail industry for a few years but realized that retail would never get me any closer to my dream of having my own business. On my weekends, I created fruit bouquets. Suddenly, I found more and more of my friends and family demanding these edible creations. My hobby quickly turned into a small business venture. Based on this premise that a bouquet can be more than just flowers, Palaite Pleasures Inc. was born as a home-based operation in 2006.
It was during this process that I started to realize that all the hats I had worn and the many trials I had overcome over the years was God’s way of equipping me with the tools I would need to become a successful businesswoman. Now, 9 years later Palaite Pleasures is no longer a home-based business. Instead, it is a beautiful storefront located in the Bed-Stuy area of Brooklyn, NY. Furthermore, Palaite Pleasures is the proud partner of “Fruitbouquets.com,” an edible component of 1-800 Flowers for the New York Tri-State area.
My goal is to have a chain of shops and for the name Palaite Pleasures to be just as branded as my competitors. I know this loan will be another step in that direction.
We are Palaite Pleasures where we take great pride in OUR MISSION to provide the freshest product, reliable service and to exceed your expectations while pleasing your eyes as well as your palate.
Palaite Pleasures Inc. is a company that designs and creates unique customized edible bouquets, centerpieces, platters and smoothies made from fruits, vegetables and chocolates. Boasting creativity that is unmatched, our edible favors, centerpieces and unique bouquets have become hot commodities for the health conscious person, at corporate events, children’s parties, baby and bridal showers, and bachelor and bachelorette parties. We are also sought after as personal customized gifts.
Thanks to a partnership with the 1800 Flowers fruit bouquet division in 2013, our business moved from being based out of my home to our first storefront in Brooklyn. This partnership resulted in a rapid and steady growth of Palaite Pleasures daily production. We have since relocated to a larger more convenient location. As a result, our production is expected to grow even.
Our biggest challenge right now is deliveries and sometimes not having enough supply to meet the growing demand for our product. Since we service Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan, we are seeking help to acquire extra coolers, to stock up on hard goods supplies, and to buy fruits needed to meet the expected high volume for the holidays.
Initially we only offered fruit bouquets but our creativity, coupled with our social and health conscious responsibility, eventually gave birth to our exotic juice blends and salads with our homemade dressings. Every single creation is made with the highest quality fruits and vegetables carefully selected by our own hands and can be customized.
“Just as each client is unique, so is each one of our creations.”
With this loan helping me to reopen my store. We will be able to service a whole new clientele in our new location. We will be able to do our deliveries more efficiently and introduce our new line of products.
Breakdown of funds:
$1000 Dessert refrigerator
$2500 New Signage and marketing materials
$500 New and larger delivery cooler bags
$1000 Hard goods (containers, packaging supplies, sticks etc.)
*** Perks for Lenders: ***
Thanks for supporting my loan! I’d like to offer all my lenders a PERK for supporting me. Everyone who loans will receive a 25% off discount for our products with a purchase of $50 or more (excluding delivery) when we are fully funded. Please see the Conversations tab for more details.