Cathy Bishop, owner of catering business and event venue, Aggies, named Iowa Small Business Person of the Year.

Cathy Bishop is the President of Aggies, Inc., a BBQ catering company in her hometown of Sergeant Bluff, Iowa.

A 1983 graduate of Texas A&M (the Aggies), Bishop spent ten years in Colorado as a bank examiner. She had always dreamed of being an entrepreneur though, and in 1994 Bishop came home and opened Aggies. Aggies began as a restaurant with some catering, but in 2009 Aggies pivoted to catering full-time and turned the restaurant into an event venue.

Bishop spoke to Radio Iowa about the change.

“We had such a different menu and everything’s homemade from scratch, and people started asking us to cater for them,” Bishop says, “and so we did. Then, it got to be so much that my kitchen couldn’t handle the restaurant and the catering all at the same time.”

In 2009, Bishop pivoted into catering full-time, turned the restaurant into an event venue and immediately began hosting graduations, birthdays, retirements, weddings, funerals and more.

Offering breakfast, lunch and dinner catering on weekdays and multiple events on weekends, Bishop has continued adding members to her staff over the past 15 years.

Like most restaurants, Aggies was affected by COVID. Aggies started “COVID Carryout” where
customers could place pick-up orders from a daily menu posted on Facebook. This concept, along with two PPP loans and a Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) award from SBA, helped Aggies survive the pandemic without laying off any employees. Aggies has grown since and currently employs over 50 full and part-time employees.

Being named Iowa’s Small Business Person of the Year is a wonderful honor, but she says her mottos and business practices are simple she told Radio Iowa:

“I treat people the way I want to be treated. My dad was an entrepreneur and he taught me to do deals with a handshake and I’ve always done that,” Bishop says. “It’s always good to get involved in your community, supporting other people, helping other people get involved in starting new businesses. Small businesses are all in the same kind of boat and they need each other to help support each other.”

Bishop serves on the board of the Siouxland Chamber of Commerce and, through Aggies, supports many local charities and organizations.

Bishop will be formally recognized in person April 28-29 during the National Small Business Week Award Ceremonies in Washington, D.C., where one of the state or territory winners will also be announced as the 2024 National Small Business Person of the Year.

The 2024 National Small Business Person(s) of the Year were announced on March 7 alongside the other National Small Business Week Award Winners, which also include lending partners, small business advocates, advisors, and investors who support America’s small business ecosystem.

The 2024 National Small Business Week (NSBW) will be held from April 28-May 4. In addition to the in-person Awards Ceremonies, the week-long National Small Business Week celebration will feature a virtual summit co-hosted by SCORE, mentors to America’s small businesses. For more information, please visit www.sba.gov/nsbw. 

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