Co-Founder | Social Media & Digital Marketing

Martha Cromar

If every picture tells a story, the photo that Martha Cromar holds most dear is one of herself as a tot, standing on a stool in her mother’s Mill Valley kitchen, keenly stirring a pot of sauce. It depicts the beginnings of her lifelong culinary passion, which grew into cooking regularly on her own at age 12 from Martha Stewart recipes, because she figured it was only right for one Martha to take after another. 

Two years into attending college, Cromar found her heart just wasn’t in it. So, she made the brave decision to turn her back on that to enroll in a culinary program in Boulder, CO instead, as well as to start working in restaurants. She followed that up by moving back to the Bay Area to attend San Francisco’s California Culinary Academy, along with stints working in the kitchens of Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn, Delfina, Delfina Pizzeria.

Wanting to broaden her horizons, she moved to London to study pastry at Le Cordon Bleu and to work as a chef de partie at the Tate Museum’s bustling event kitchen. After earning an MBA from the University of Wales, Cromar decided to switch it up by using her culinary acumen in a different way. She was hired as a recipe editor for Food Network UK, then later as an editorial assistant and online content producer for the UK’s second largest television network, ITV, where she began to hone her skills in online media, including video editing, web page building, and social media management. That was when she realized that her years as a professional cook uniquely qualified her to tell the authentic stories of chefs, restaurants, and businesses engagingly and effectively.

So, upon her return to San Francisco, it was no surprise that, when she interviewed for a job at Michelin three-starred and World’s 50 Best Award-winning Saison, chef-owner Joshua Skenes hired her to be the culinary liaison, a job that he quickly expanded after realizing how much she could handle. Over the course of a year, Cromar took on additional management tasks in the restaurant and on its social media channels. She helped launch the restaurant’s exclusive chef’s counter, and managed whatever projects came up, including overseeing all contracting and maintenance work, and inventory controls. It was also at Saison that she met her husband David Sisler, who was the general manager, as well as Kristine Keefer, who was then handling public relations for the restaurant.

Cromar then spent time working for a branding agency and in-house at CamelBak as the social media director for the innovative global brand. Her journey eventually led her to work as social media manager for Keefer’s consulting company, before starting her own firm, Social by Martha to provide digital media services for the likes of Gary Farrell Vineyards & Winery, The Barlow and Piper Sonoma.  

Harnessing the capabilities of modern technological tools, she loves nothing more than helping businesses tell their story and grow their presence in meaningful ways.