Meet Mairene & Jimmy Branham | Founders & Nutritionists

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mairene & Jimmy Branham and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mairene & Jimmy, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
We once saw a quote that said, “You can either wake up and help someone build their dream, or you can wake up to work on fulfilling yours”. This really spoke to us at that time. I was working in sales for a hardware engineering company making them millions a year and feeling underappreciated. I one day took that quote to heart and decided I could help my partner build a company where I could eventually reap my reward for my hard work. In addition, we decided while dating being engaged that we may want a family in the future, and having the ability to take off when we wanted could only be possible if we owned our own business. Jimmy had come from a background where his family restaurant taught him what it would be like to own a business, deal with costumers, finances, and such that it was a path he wanted to continue.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
When you hear the words meal prep, you think of little containers sitting in your refrigerator meant to make your life easy with no prep work, and that is true. Our story starts a little differently. We knew that if we started a meal prep business where we sold everything online would make us money, but we weren’t in this just for the money. We wanted to make a difference in this world, we wanted to help people, truly help people. We decided we would do a completely free nutrition consultation prior to a person getting started. This consultation was made to gather information about their health and fitness goals. We would personally sit with each person and breakdown those goals, diagnose a proper calorie intake, and set new goals moving forward. The very last thing we talk about is the actual meal prep part. This route was certainly not the easiest but it was the most worth it. To overcome the recurring challenges, we worked countless hours on our own nutrition booklet and reading material. We created an easy to read macronutrient sheet individualized for each client. Most of our clients leave feeling better and can now use the meals they will be getting to reach goal objectives with the new information they learned. Through this work, we found that the basics of nutrition are lacking in our community. Most people need help reprogramming their eating habits, so we found that knowledge helps make those habits better. We would like the world to know that all it takes is someone with a passion in their field to change the world little by little. We took this approach and now thousands of clients around San Diego have practiced and learned more about optimal nutrition and overall health.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
First on the list would be La Jolla shores. A nice brisk walk around the beachside and a picnic on the lawn would make an ideal day out. Another one of our favorites is Little Italy. We love visiting Little Italy because of the wondrous vibe and restaurants. Our all-time favorite restaurant in Little Italy would be Barbusa as it brings all of the authentic traditions and tastes. Seaport village would be definitely on the list with a ferry ride across to Coronado Island. The combination of both could run an entire day of site seeing and dining. For another day, a fun day spent at Mission beach Belmont Park would be a fun afternoon. Riding bikes or rollerskating through the boardwalk. Stopping at one of the restaurants for some grub and then laying out. Depending on the time of the year, a visit to Julian would be fun as well. Stopping for some epic warm Julian pie is always a good choice. One of the days would also include Viejas resort and Casino. Do a little gambling, shopping, and eating. The buffet there is also phenomenal. For a relaxing day, a trip to Balboa park and museum would be great. Site seeing there is awesome with the option of a couple of hours spent at the San Diego Zoo.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
We’ve definitely had our share of support. Especially in the beginning stages of our business. We never looked for free handouts but there were people who believed in us from the start. One person would be Angel Sanchez owner of Ultimate Sport Nutrition. He pushed us to open our consulting office in his space which helped us propel our business forward. The biggest thanks go to our parents. They weren’t able to help us in a monetary way, but they worked countless hours by our side with little to no pay at all. The endless words of encouragement and support really pushed us to keep going. They served as counselors and stepped out of their role as parents to be more like friends to see us flourish.

Website: www.themealprepco.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themealprepco/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/themealprepco/
Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-meal-prep-company-san-diego
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhnGzyM5Cmk