August 3, 2022

“My business didn’t happen overnight,” shares Mia Ormes, BS hospitality management ’01. “It was an evolution over time that grew from many learning experiences and my own life.”

Ormes is the owner of Tribu, a meal service company specializing in prenatal and postpartum foods with an emphasis on the traditional flavors of the African Diaspora. Meals are catered to the nutritional needs of pregnant or postpartum families and can be delivered within a 20-mile radius of Philadelphia. Ormes’s vision for Tribu grew from her own experience.

After the birth of her first child, Ormes met with herbalists and holistic health experts to learn more about food science and beneficial ingredients for the postpartum body. Now a mother of two and a practicing doula, Ormes is committed to providing solutions to growing families.

“When I was postpartum, no one talked to me about having food ready,” Ormes comments. “You don’t really have the capacity to cook everything you need, so I came up with the idea of a meal kit service to take that burden off mothers and families. I didn’t want to create a high-end service that was only available to certain people. Tribu is for everyone who needs it; that is the goal.”

Ormes has been in the food and hospitality industry for over twenty years. She says that her experience in the College of Nursing and Health Professions' Food and Hospitality Management program prepared her to enter the food industry with a focus on business management.

“I chose to study at Drexel because I wanted a business degree. For me, it was important to understand management as well as culinary skills, and those insights have helped me shape my business into what it is today,” Ormes shares.

Tribu’s meal kit menu features a variety of flavors rooted in the African Diaspora. From ancient grain porridge, gumbo, sancoche, lactation cookies and more, Tribu’s menu reflects Ormes’s passion for holistic nutrition and her desire to support new mothers and families.

“You don’t have to be pregnant, postpartum or a mother to enjoy these meals. My kids love the gumbo!” Ormes says. “Yet, what is so important to me is helping mothers feel secure, cared for, loved and nourished.”

After years away from Drexel University’s campus, Ormes has returned to where it all began. Tribu was accepted into the Drexel Food Lab’s Good Food Business Accelerator Program, a technical assistance grant that supports local businesses to bring “good food” products to market. This grant was created to support local businesses that focus on nutrition, sustainability, fair labor practices, local economic investment and supporting communities most negatively impacted by inequities in the food system.

“Working with Drexel has been great,” Ormes concludes. “It is such a 360° moment. I started out here and now I find myself back on campus; it’s all kind of surreal. The program has been amazing. I am gaining so much working with the Food Lab. I am inspired to think more deeply about how to scale this business and level it up.”

Written by Izzy Lopez