April 14--Tamis Davis looked at what her father was eating toward the end of his life and didn't like what she saw.
He'd bought some bananas and yogurt, but the Type 2 diabetic was also subsisting on takeout, junk food, cigarettes and alcohol.
His death at age 56 provided the catalyst for Davis and husband Matthew Davis' new venture, Harvest Market, a health-food grocery that opened March 14 in Spotsylvania Courthouse Village.
"It hit home," Davis said. "By 2050, one in three American children will be Type 2 diabetic. I have three children. The math isn't hard."
She and her husband knew that the best way to ward off health problems in the future is to eat healthfully now. And they realized there were few options in the Spotsylvania Courthouse area for buying the kinds of local and organic food and other products that they wanted.
So last year the Davises began drawing on their past experience working for Hermitage Homes, a local builder, to get their new business up and running. He'd been the site foreman and she was the bookkeeper until they lost their jobs during the recession. They've also gotten help from the Rappahannock Area Small Business Development Center in Stafford County.
Today their compact but fully stocked grocery specializes in locally grown and organic meats, eggs and produce, including pork from Papa Weaver's in Orange County and Pink House Pigs in Mineral, tofu and mushroom pate from Twin Oaks Community Foods in Louisa, Prairie Grain Bread from Midlothian and Blackstone Coffees from Spotsylvania.
They even carry frozen meals for children, such as spaghetti and meatballs from Mom Made, an Alexandria company.
"We're making it as local as possible," said Tamis Davis. "We'd rather it come from Virginia than China or even California."
Not only does that help the local economy, local produce retains more of its vitamins and minerals and it doesn't have to be shipped as far, Matthew Davis added.
Harvest Market also has sections for vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free items, organic pet food, environmentally friendly cleaning products, homeopathic remedies, vitamins and skin-care products such as sunscreen.
So far, the couple said, they've had a good response from customers. They drummed up some initial interest by taking part as a vendor in the Sustainable Family Dinner Table program held April 2 at Beaverdam Baptist Church, and do daily in-store tastings to introduce customers to various products.
"People were saying things like, 'Wow, this is kind of like a Trader Joe's,'" said Matthew Davis.
Harvest Market has grinders so customers can make their own fresh peanut and almond butters in the store, and eventually plans to add another to mill wheat berries into flour, which has a shorter shelf life than wheat berries, or seeds.
The Davises also are looking for a local supplier for bulk honey, and want to offer classes on vegetarian and gluten-free cooking. And they plan to add to-go lunches, which they think will be popular with county staff working in the building next door.
"As soon as we do, we'll send out fliers," Tamis Davis said.
Cathy Jett: 540/374-5407
Email: cjett@freelancestar.com
My Own Boss is an occasional series about local entrepreneurs.
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