Ok, so first, thank you to Syd and Chuck for getting this idea off the ground. And thanks for asking me to participate – but then telling me to go first! So --
Deanna & I and our two boys (ages 10 and 8) live in Barre, VT in a great spot. We ski when there’s snow (me on telemark and XC), I get on my bike once a week or so, and we otherwise enjoy the hiking and lakes nearby. I do some hobby-scale farming on our 3+ acres as well.
I’m spending most of my time these days growing two businesses. I’m CEO of Vermont Smoke and Cure, a small but rapidly growing smokehouse business (see our Smoked Pepperoni in the November Gourmet magazine). We’re planning for a new facility & starting an equity raise for that. Exciting stuff, but of course it requires some hours.
Vermont Smoke and Cure, in addition to its own brand of smoked meats, offers meat processing services (a crucial piece of the ag infrastructure) for farmers in Vermont as well as creating & taking to market value-added products from meats from small farms.
The Farmers Diner is the sister company of Vermont Smoke and Cure. I’m (fortunately decreasingly) part-time Controller and point on external marketing there. The Farmers Diner is basically a rural development project masquerading as a diner. It connects customers with local farmers by buying about 2/3 of food from local farmers and processors.
Yes, there’s a theme here. I’m working to try to create demand and value for local and regional-scale farms so that they have a better chance of thriving economically. Seven years of farming and then an MBA gave me motivation and some tools to hopefully make some progress on this challenge.
I hope all are well, and that people will get in touch if headed to Vermont, especially if for some skiing at or nearby Sugarbush. I get to the Boston, NY City and now Chicago areas increasingly regularly and would welcome the chance for a coffee or beer with folks there.
There – I look forward to hearing what each of you are up to.
Best to all,
Chris
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Ian de Nolfo
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Frederick Ilchman
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Fitz Flynn
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1 comment:
Hi Chris,
Great to hear from you! Thanks so much for reaching out.
There are lots of us in the locations you've mentioned – all of whom we've marked down in the 'Who's Doing What and Where' page. For example, Lowrey Sullivan and Pete Seymour live in VT, not too far from you. People of interest for Vermont Smoke and Cure might include Yann De Rochefort (NYC) and Tim Kirker (Chicago), both of whom are in the restaurant biz. Tim's actually a highly acclaimed chef. Consider also Troy Duncan (NYC) for your capital raise – I might also be to help you in this regard through my firm.
Keep us updated on folks you've contacted, and folks contacting you.
Best,
Syd
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