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Food Brands
Food Brands Monday
15Oct
The Gracious Gourmet - Spreading Appeal
Monday, October 15, 2007 at 08:51AM Foodpreneur:
Nancy Wekselbaum
About the Foodpreneur:
I have a passion for food. I like talking about it, shopping for it, creating it and sharing my cooking with friends, and of course, eating it! During a power outage in Bridgewater, CT, I was serving chutney with roast beef to a 98 year old friend who suggested it was so delicious that I should start a business. I had been part of a large retail operation in NY and I have a background in finance and economics and helped my husband build a retail business for more than 20 years. Those experiences, combined with my culinary enthusiasm, made the idea of creating this company feel like a perfect fit. I went to a local grocery store, bought the ingredients and went to a manufacturer to figure out my next steps. I had no idea what I was doing. I followed their advice, spoke with a lot of people and suddenly I was sitting with 300 cases of my favorite recipes in my garage.
About the Gracious Gourmet Biz:
The Gracious Gourmet is about making life easier for working people. Our products are geared to people who love good food, but might not have the experience or the time to produce exceptional dishes or simply liven up what they are serving. Our flavors are unique and our aim is quite simple. We want every one’s meals to be special occasions. That’s why we say our products are always delicious and always easy to use. We are always the Gracious Gourmet!
Founded:
November 2006
Current Clients:
Specialty Gourmet Retailers
In The News:
Local Newspapers
Marketing Strategies:
We deal only with high end independent retail establishments. From sophisticated gift stores to high end cheese shops to the independent gourmet food retailer, these stores have all been very successful selling The Gracious Gourmet line. They offer their customers the chance to taste our products and show many ways to use the products with shelf talkers and with recipes from our website.
Nancy new Gracious Gourmet would be a hit because:
I had done my homework and I had produced a product of which I was tremendously proud that was made with premium ingredients. I knew that I liked it and that my friends liked it, but was nervous that nothing would sell. Fifty cases of each product were delivered to my house and I put it in the garage. As I stood there, looking at all the cartons, all I could think was: My word. What have I done? Well, at least my friends would have chutney forever.
Why is Nancy in the food business?
Because I am nuts...about food!
What is something difficult about being in the biz?
Not having enough hours in the day.
Foodpreneur says:
Gracious Living - Characterized by charm, good taste, generosity of spirit, and the tasteful leisure of wealth and good breeding (merriam - webster). The name, product and customer base are very much alike. These delightful chutneys and glazes are quickly becoming available in retail locations across the US. Being available in a prominent gourmet foods retailers such as The Fresh Market will keep the doors open to many more retail locations in the future. Nancy has a lot of competition in the chutney, glaze, spread division but does an excellent job on focusing on her high-end customer base. You will not see the clean packaged bottles of ginger peach apricot spread on the shelves of a low-end retailer. It's just not what the product is made for. Like most smart food entrepreneurs, Nancy is using her past experience, advice from others and contacts for a launchpad to success.
Contacting The Gracious Gourmet:
The Gracious Gourmet
PO Box 218
Bridgewater, CT 06752
860.350.1213
Website: The Gracious Gourmet
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