Kayla Schneider started Meal Prep Proz after seeing a need for healthy, pre-prepped meals in the Midland area.
Brianna Edgar/Midland Daily News
Kayla Schneider started Meal Prep Proz after seeing a need for healthy, pre-prepped meals in the Midland area.
Brianna Edgar/Midland Daily News
Kayla Schneider started Meal Prep Proz after seeing a need for healthy, pre-prepped meals in the Midland area.
Brianna Edgar/Midland Daily News
Kayla Schneider started Meal Prep Proz after seeing a need for healthy, pre-prepped meals in the Midland area.
Brianna Edgar/Midland Daily News
Kayla Schneider started Meal Prep Proz about 10 years ago after noticing that her personal training clients were struggling in the kitchen. She began with chicken, vegetables and rice prepared in rented commercial kitchens, which has now grown into a Midland storefront offering grab-and-go meals, delivery, snacks, catering and charcuterie boards.
Schneiter recently celebrated five years at the business’s current location at 1525 Washington Street. She spoke about Meal Prep Proz’s beginnings, the importance of giving back and what she values most about feeding her neighbors.
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How would you describe your business?
We make healthy eating accessible and affordable for our community. We have our grab-and-go, which we stock fresh Monday through Thursday. We’re also open Fridays, but with limited hours.
We also offer meal delivery, so people can order online and have a week’s worth of meals delivered to them. That really makes life a lot easier for a lot of people.
What inspired you to start Meal Prep Proz?
I was a personal trainer. I went to Delta College through its Possible Dream program and then its health fitness specialist program.
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I had maybe been a personal trainer for six months, but all of my clients were having issues in the kitchen. I thought, “Well, someone has to be able to cook food around here.” I looked online, and I couldn’t find anything that was affordable and fresh. Everything was super high in sodium, frozen and then, like, $40 in shipping. That just wasn’t realistic, but the service was definitely needed.
So I was like, “Fine, I’ll cook.”
My first menu was literally just chicken, vegetables and rice. It was one of my first times even cooking raw chicken, to be honest. But we persevered, and we learned a lot. I got my culinary certificate this year, so I know how to cook properly now.
We started with a super-basic, super-clean menu. It was originally a service just for my clients, but a lot of people were like, “No, we really need that.”
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It became my goal to make healthy food affordable for our community and the surrounding communities.
How did the business grow from there?
We started off just doing delivery. I would rent a commercial kitchen on the weekends while I was still finishing college.
Once I had my pennies saved, five years later, we were able to open this place.
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Our first kitchen was in Bay City. Our second one was in Beaver (Township). They were community halls that we rented on the weekends, and then we delivered on Mondays. We didn’t have the grab-and-go like we do now.
For the first five years, I didn’t have any bank loans or anything. I just started small and trusted that I would be able to handle growth as it gradually came. I think that really helped shape me because it wasn’t a lot all at once. It was steady growth. Those humble beginnings were a really good foundation for us.
What did reaching five years at the storefront mean to you?
I had imposter syndrome about it. I was like, “I don’t even know what I’m doing. Should I even do this?”
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But five years was a solidifying point for me as a business owner. I could say, “I actually do know what I’m doing, and I’m doing pretty well at it.”
What does the storefront offer that you couldn’t provide before?
You can just come in, grab and go, see the food and try it first.
Ordering food online is super popular now, but ordering a whole week’s worth at once can feel different. Sometimes people are a little apprehensive.
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Our menu changes every week. We don’t specialize in only certain dishes, although we definitely have fan favorites. With the menu changing every week, people can try a few weeks’ worth and see whether it’s a good variety for them. Some people also just prefer coming in and seeing us during their lunch hour.
What accomplishments are you most proud of?
I’m really proud of the culinary certificate. That was helpful in expanding our menu and elevating a lot of our dishes.
I’m also super stoked about five years here. Like I said, that was a solidifying moment for me and gave me the confidence to feel like I actually know what I’m doing. I’m also 30 now, so maybe that has something to do with it.
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I’m really proud of the staff we have here, too. They’re awesome. We’re at a point now where I can live my life a little bit and trust them to run things and push out quality products. I don’t have to be here micromanaging.
How has the Midland community influenced your business?
I’m a product of a lot of Midland resources, like the foster care system. There was a time when we were in Shelterhouse’s care, and I was also at the community center.
Without Midland’s awesome resources, who knows where I would have been? It’s pretty personal for me to give back to our community.
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Even if it’s little things, like doing a trunk-or-treat with Garber, we’re excited about it. We’re going to dress up the Subaru. That’s going to be fun.
We donate our extra meals to Midland’s Open Door every week. We don’t have a lot of waste here, which is awesome, but when we do have extra food, it still doesn’t go to waste.
We’ve done fundraisers for Shelterhouse, and we’ve worked with the Child Abuse and Neglect Council in the past. We try to give back in various ways, but most importantly, we want to make sure our neighbors have something healthy to eat.
I’m really passionate about it because it’s not like I can change the world, but I can make a little bit of change. Food is hard for a lot of people. For us to be a tool that helps them live a healthier life is important.
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Why did you choose Midland?
I grew up in Midland and graduated from Midland High. It’s nice to be home and to see people from all paths of life come through and support Meal Prep Proz.
It’s been really nice, and I’m very thankful. We’ve got good neighbors here.
What do you value most about your work?
Obviously, our customers and the people we feed.
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We’ve seen people get engaged, move and have babies. Now their kids answer the door and pick up their meal preps for them. That is awesome.
I also love all my staff. We have a really great environment here. People show up, they do a great job at their job and we always have good attitudes.
Having a work environment that’s pretty stress-free makes life a lot easier.
Is there a community partnership you’re especially proud of?
Midland Local is our neighbor. They handle our media, website and everything technology-wise. They’ve really been helpful for our growth.
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Having a strong, reliable person handle everything that I’m not good at has been really helpful. They also do a lot of community outreach. They’re awesome.
We’ve been with them for probably two years now, and it’s really nice having them right next door.
Why should customers do business with Meal Prep Proz?
Because we care about them and it’s going to make their life easier. It’s not too bad on the wallet, and they’re going to love us.
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What is the price range?
Breakfasts are about $6 to $8. Lunches are about $9 to $12 or $13, depending on the portion and the protein. Dinners are about the same.
We also have little snacks, including snack packs and protein balls.
What is a customer favorite?
I think a lot of people would agree that it’s our stuffed sweet potato. It’s probably the second dish I learned how to make, and it’s been a staple. It’s sweet potato, barbecue ground turkey, broccoli and cheddar cheese.
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And soup. We put love in our soup. Soup season is coming in hot. We’ve been doing a lot of soup, and I love making it.
Is there anything else people should know about Meal Prep Proz?
We do catering. We also do really fun charcuterie boards. They’re beautiful. I love making them.
We also participate in Bullock Creek’s work-based learning program. That’s how we got Alana. She’s wonderful. She started as an intern, and now she’s a part-time, real employee.
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We’ve had a few students from the program, and it has been a fun way to be more involved in our community. I genuinely love having the kids here because they’re more tech-savvy than I am. I need them.
Meal Prep Proz is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Fridays. People can pre-order online at MealPrepProz.com. More information can be found by emailing MealPrepProz@Gmail.com or calling 989-430-3957.