A Lifelong Passion.
Culinary Kitten is the brainchild of Pekio Vergotis, a Portland-based professional with expertise in digital marketing, PR and public relations and an all-consuming passion for the food and drink of the Pacific Northwest.
From an early age, Pekio learned to grow, harvest, preserve and prepare local food in its season. Whether picking strawberries at Sauvie Island, catching sea perch off the jetty at Garibaldi or canning the string beans plucked from her parents’ garden, she found inspiration in the forests, rivers, coasts, and farms that make up our region’s rich culinary landscape. Her experience instilled a firm belief that the very best food grows and thrives where we do, and that place, process, ingredients and people matter. This belief continues to guide and inspire her work today.
Elevating Local Food and Drink.
As part of the team who helped stand up New Deal Distillery in 2004, she supported its growth by developing new business and employing strategic philanthropy to increase the visibility of New Deal spirits, forge critical partnerships and build brand awareness. She created original web content, email, print, press, and social media marketing campaigns to support events and product launches, managed media relations and founded Season’s Eatings, an annual shopping event promoting local food and drink brands, benefitting the Oregon Food Bank and laying the foundation for new partnerships and product collaborations.
Adding Value.
After accepting a Senior Analyst role with Comcast Cable in 2014, she led internal audit engagements of construction, sales, retail, and warehouse operations throughout Oregon and Washington. Tackling business challenges large and small, she achieved a reputation for valuable insights and recommendations, and a collaborative approach that resulted in measurable improvements across the organization. While at Comcast, she obtained an MBA in Marketing from Marylhurst University and advanced certification in Digital Marketing Strategies from Portland State University’s Center for Executive Education.
Reaching Beyond.
During that time, she led sponsorship, mentorship and philanthropic initiatives while serving on the Pacific Northwest Chapter Board of the WICT Network, a global organization focused on developing and empowering women leaders in the Cable Telecommunications industry. In 2020, she was appointed to help launch and lead membership strategy and operations for Indigenous @Comcast, the first companywide employee resource group to recognize and raise awareness of the diverse cultures, traditions and contributions of Indigenous cultures and peoples across the globe.
Marrying Skill and Passion.
Coming out of the pandemic and witnessing the devastating effects that it had on small businesses, including artisan producers in her community, she was compelled to refocus her professional efforts, aligning her love of local food and drink with her product marketing experience and business acumen to form Culinary Kitten, LLC, an agency alternative to support and promote artisan food and drink makers with custom, affordable marketing solutions to help their brands grow brands and thrive.