You Can’t Fake Authentic

Last evening I had the extreme pleasure of attending the graduation party of a now Nazareth alumni.

I stress “extreme pleasure,” because the young woman and her entire family are immigrants from Ethiopia, which as you might guess, means this was more than your standard fare, college graduation party. In fact, it would be apt to call it an ethnic festival, attended not only by relatives, but people considered extended family, even Rochester’s city councilman Adam McFadden. All in all, at least 100 to 150 souls attended. Who knew Rochester had such a sizable, vibrant Ethiopian community?

Besides meeting many wonderful people, my favorite part of the entire experience had to be sampling  the cuisine. Fortunately, my steel trap stomach could handle the eye-watering chicken wat stew, which I scooped up in heaps with with spongy injera flat bread.  Although I’m thankful I didn’t drink too much Tej, a sweet, honey brewed mead. Otherwise, I might have worked up the courage to swallow the Gored gored, raw beef cubes dipped in a fiery mitmita marinade. No, that would have been too much for the pallet to handle.

Afterwards, we settled down in conversation, letting the Tej loosen lips, and inhibitions as people began swaying to traditional and popular Ethiopian songs. To date, I’m still wondering how they accomplish that gyrating shoulder style of dancing. Anything involving rhythm escapes me.

All of this was made possible by the herculean efforts of the young graduate’s mother. Who, with help I’m sure, prepared the extensive menu and concerned herself with the other details that culminated in a successful event. I learned that bucket loads of wat had been stewing in spices for 5 hours, and the Tej had begun fermenting a month prior. Planning for the party must have been months in the making.

Is there a point to this recollection? The term ‘authentic’ is often bandied about in marketing circles. Like other buzz words, its often mis-used, or seen has a quick fix to company woes. When it’s really more about defining who you are, then creating a consistent set of experiences which will shape your identity in the customers mind.

What I saw last night is a tight knit community of people that value a college education, are unafraid to express themselves, and who savor gut busting foods. How do your customers see you?