John Serock of John Serock Catering has been in the food industry for almost his whole life. Serock, who was born and raised in Havertown, started out at the young age of 12 in the business and has never looked back. His uncle owned an after-hours club in Delaware County and he worked catering jobs in both high school and college, too.
Why does he love catering so much? John explains, “No two days are ever alike in this business. I love that it is constantly changing and I love the challenge. You have to stay new and fresh and definitely can’t run on autopilot.”
He started his catering company in December 2000 and recently celebrated 15 years in the business. In the beginning, Serock’s company was based out of Malvern and he was in a lease situation paying high rent. He shares, “In 2010, I needed to renew my lease and realized that I needed to make some hard choices. I was in a retail space paying high rent, but really wasn’t in a retail business. It didn’t help that the economy wasn’t great, either.” And then he met Chuck Swope of Swope Lees.
Serock wanted to find another, hopefully more reasonable, rental space to run his company, so Swope began showing him rentals in a variety of local communities. John says, “Chuck showed me at least a dozen 2,000- to 7,000-square-foot rental properties because that is what I had asked for him to do. But, during the process, Chuck began to open my eyes to the benefits of owning my own space instead of renting. It wasn’t as expensive as I thought it would be!”
With the encouragement and expertise of Chuck Swope, Serock purchased a 2,700-square-foot property in Lincoln Independence Park in West Chester. But, Swope became much more than a commercial real estate agent during their initial work together.
Serock says, “Chuck is extremely knowledgeable about the area. We looked all over Chester County. He knew everyone and had me look at spaces and then would introduce me to owners in the same complex or area so I could ask questions about the building and the community. He was selling me on places, not just spaces.”
He continues, “Chuck introduced us to people who have since become clients. He introduced me to the local Small Business Association and also helped us find a local lender. He went above and beyond what I thought a real estate agent would do for a client. He held my hand through the process and answered all of my questions. I don’t know if I would have taken the leap of building ownership without the confidence Chuck Swope gave me.”
Serock was really struck by Chuck Swope’s ability to bring Serock Catering into the community. He says,”What hit me from day one was that he wasn’t just real estate agent. He helped us grow our own business, brought us into the community and really made us feel a part of the area.”
Swope also advised Serock to purchase the property and to leave room to grow by buying in a location that had empty spaces next door. That sage advice has paid off. Since purchasing the initial space, Serock has built a second floor, which added an additional 900 square feet to the facility. On the four-year anniversary of signing his first purchase agreement, Serock Catering purchased another 2,700 square feet adjacent to his current space. As the company has grown, so has the need for additional space—just like Chuck Swope predicted!
The plan for the new space includes office areas for the team (he now has three event planners!) as well as an expansion of the kitchen. With the added square feet, Serock has also been able to purchase, rather than rent, equipment that he previously didn’t have room to store on site.
Serock was so impressed with Chuck Swope’s commitment to the West Chester community that he finally decided to relocate there. John, his wife and their two children made the move to West Chester 1½ years ago. “Chuck really did a great job of selling the area, not just the property I was buying. Now I don’t just do business there, I am a part of the West Chester community, too,” explains Serock. “I’m a local resident and any profits are being reinvested in West Chester. I patronize local restaurants and other businesses and strive to keep the money within community.”
Find John Serock Catering at 835 Lincoln Ave. in West Chester; phone: (610) 640-2836.
- Photos: John Serock Catering
