From a busy salon to a bustling kitchen, Sarah Gunn’s journey to launching Sarah’s Family Kitchen is one of resilience, reinvention, and a deep-rooted desire to give back. A former hairdresser since the age of 15, Sarah found herself needing a career change due to health challenges, including ADHD and multiple surgeries. As a single mother of three, she had long been preparing wholesome meals for her own family.
The idea for Sarah’s Family Kitchen was born from a simple but powerful observation: there was a lack of accessible, additive-free meal options for people who couldn’t cook due to time constraints, physical limitations, or mental health challenges. Sarah had experienced all of these herself and understood firsthand how difficult it could be to maintain a healthy diet under pressure. Her solution was to create ready-to-heat meal kits made from scratch – healthier than takeaways, free from additives, and designed to make mealtimes easier for families across Edinburgh and Musselburgh.
Operating out of a commercial kitchen at The Venue, Eskmills once a week, Sarah opens for orders on Mondays and closes on Saturdays, offering delivery and collection options. Her kits range from three to six days’ worth of meals, and her mission goes far beyond convenience. With a strong sense of community, Sarah has partnered with the Magdalene Community Centre, where she herself attended as a child, to launch a “Pay It Forward” initiative. This system allows customers to donate a meal kit, or contribute toward one, for individuals or families in need. The centre serves a community with areas ranked among Scotland’s most deprived 10%, making the partnership especially meaningful.
Sarah officially launched her business in mid-June and quickly discovered the steep learning curve of moving from domestic to commercial cooking. Adjusting menus, scaling recipes, and navigating the realities of sales versus interest were all part of the process. With invaluable guidance from Business Gateway East Lothian adviser Steve Newlin, whose support was instrumental in her relocation to the area, Sarah successfully secured the £500 UK Shared Prosperity Fund New Business Support Grant. The funding will be used to support marketing and packaging efforts, helping to ease the pressure during those crucial early weeks. Sarah’s family has also played a key role, with her mother building the website and her brothers offering support in various ways.
Looking ahead, Sarah hopes to grow her client base, expand delivery options, and collaborate with more community groups. Her advice to others considering a similar path is grounded in experience: “Keep powering through the tough times. Expect it to be hard work at the start, but going through it to achieve your dreams is worth it, especially when that dream is to give back to the community.”
Sarah’s Family Kitchen is more than a business – it’s a reflection of lived experience, compassion, and the belief that good food can be a lifeline.
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