Lorraine Green

Lorraine Green describes her business like a love story, with the chapters of her personal and business story very much inter-twined. To her, there was her life before the business and a first marriage gone wrong, and then her life with Lorraine’s Pantry and a loving relationship with second husband, Rod.

Lorraine grew up in Montreal, in a strict, but loving Italian family, with a mother who had to work outside the home to make ends meet, and a father who was an alcoholic. “I grew up scared of everything and would turn inside myself and escape to my books, because you never quite knew what would happen next with my father.”

“Back then there was no way that my mother could have left, so she worked hard to hold her family together.” explains Lorraine. And so with two sisters and a brother at home, Lorraine started cooking for her family when she was 11, and discovered a passion that would last her a lifetime.

When she first left school, Lorraine accepted a part-time summer job with her local bank, and ended up staying 23 years. Lorraine married early but it did not work out. Like her father, her husband was an alcoholic, and Lorraine recognized that she was being pulled back into the same dark mire she’d experienced growing up and after ten years, they separated.

Meantime, she worked her way up the ranks and was involved in some interesting projects within the bank. Then in the mid-80s, it all changed. As a result of downsizing, Lorraine now had the upsetting task of working out severance packages for over 60 of her colleagues and peers. “I knew these people. I had worked with some of them for over 20 years.” confesses Lorraine, “and the job was starting to take its toll on my health.”

She decided to leave and opened Lorraine’s Pantry in 1987. Eighteen years ago, there were few choices for fancy appetizers, and so Lorraine decided to introduce her own line of hors d’oeuvres.

She got her first order straight away. “He wanted 36 dozen within two days.” chuckles Lorraine “and asked if I could deliver.” “I told him no problem, and cooked non-stop in order to make the deadline.” From there, she developed a one-page menu of meals that she could prepare, and managed to make $10,000 in that first year.

Today Lorraine offers over 630 items, from as she says “soup to nuts.” Self-taught, Lorraine is always improvising on recipes, adding her own variations and special extras. She won service provider of the year in 2000 and voted best caterer in town for 11 years in a row.

With over 1,000 clients and 20 staff who help her serve the food, she still is the only one who cooks. “I like to be in control” she admits.

Working hard has certainly been a prerequisite to running this successful catering business. “I was surprised at how much physical stamina it takes - from the grocery shopping, to standing in front of a kitchen counter preparing the food, to serving it at events. “

But it has been her passion that has kept her going. “It’s important to love what you do, “ she advises “but know that it can change and evolve, and when it does, you need to revisit what you are doing from another angle.”

And Lorraine is still evolving. In 2007 she launched At Lorraine's Table through which she will offer cooking classes. You get the sense that while the ingredients may change, Lorraine has found the recipe for success.

Lorraine can be reached at lorraine@atlorrainestable.ca. www.atlorrainestable.ca

Lorraine is one of the profiles in the Company of Women’s new book The Courage to Succeed: Inspiring Stories from Enterprising Women.