Carlsbad Gourmet's Russ Bruhn had several major developments at the end of 2013: he opened his first "brick and mortar" store, filling a seasonal space at Westfield Carlsbad during the holidays, and helped baseball All Star Tony Gwynn launch and distribute a new barbecue sauce.
These were among the milestones that Carlsbad Gourmet, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary in February, has accomplished since Bruhn, whose varied background included working with computer software, toys and beauty products, decided to go into the food industry. It was a development that, coincidentally, also had to do with baseball.
Bruhn was coaching his son's baseball team which, during a tournament, was playing a visiting team from Kauai. During their introduction, the Hawaiian team presented the Carlsbad team with branded items from their island.
"We wanted to give something back to them, so we went searching throughout Carlsbad for branded items, but we couldn't find anything," Bruhn said.
Afterward, Bruhn started thinking about what could symbolize Carlsbad and he came upon the idea of food using California strawberries. He visited fancy food shows and couldn't find any, so he hired a food scientist and she helped him develop his first recipes.
Bruhn took his first product, the Strawberry Spread, to the Carlsbad Flower Fields and sold all his 120 cases in a weekend. It was an auspicious start to a product line of gourmet spreads and sauces, dressings, vinegars, mustard's and other delicacies made with California strawberries and local San Diego products.
Though he didn't have experience in the food industry, Bruhn was determined to learn.
"Once I get into something I want to own it," he said. "I learned everything I could about it, to the point where I've been around for 10 years."
Part of the company's success can be attributed to the fact that it has been able to ride several waves of popular culture. For example, he uses fresh and locally-sourced ingredients. Because he used less sugar in his spread than jams or jellies, it doesn't burn in the oven, something that led LEGOLAND California Resorts to seek out Bruhn's spread when it was developing its recipes for its "fruitizza." The theme park uses Carlsbad Gourmet spread on its peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and also uses one of his creations as its house dressing.
Bruhn also was able to team up with North County-based microbreweries, including Stone Brewing Co., to create specialty sauces featuring their craft beer.
Bruhn was able to grow his business by taking part in the Carlsbad Village Faire (presented by the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce) and by getting support from Chamber staff during his early days. It was at the November faire that a Westfield Carlsbad representative approached him about filling a spot in the mall for the holidays. Nine days later he opened the doors. His son, Jordan, is the store's manager.
"I can count the number of days off I've had on both hands," Bruhn said. "I work constantly, but it's fun and I enjoy it."
Bruhn said that part of the joy comes from the fact that he has found that it is easier to sell food than it was selling toys and computer software.
"If you make something really good, all you have to do is have customers try it," he said. "If they're not going to buy, there's nothing you can say to convince them, but if they like it they will buy. It's the beauty of the food industry."
These were among the milestones that Carlsbad Gourmet, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary in February, has accomplished since Bruhn, whose varied background included working with computer software, toys and beauty products, decided to go into the food industry. It was a development that, coincidentally, also had to do with baseball.
Bruhn was coaching his son's baseball team which, during a tournament, was playing a visiting team from Kauai. During their introduction, the Hawaiian team presented the Carlsbad team with branded items from their island.
"We wanted to give something back to them, so we went searching throughout Carlsbad for branded items, but we couldn't find anything," Bruhn said.
Afterward, Bruhn started thinking about what could symbolize Carlsbad and he came upon the idea of food using California strawberries. He visited fancy food shows and couldn't find any, so he hired a food scientist and she helped him develop his first recipes.
Bruhn took his first product, the Strawberry Spread, to the Carlsbad Flower Fields and sold all his 120 cases in a weekend. It was an auspicious start to a product line of gourmet spreads and sauces, dressings, vinegars, mustard's and other delicacies made with California strawberries and local San Diego products.
Though he didn't have experience in the food industry, Bruhn was determined to learn.
"Once I get into something I want to own it," he said. "I learned everything I could about it, to the point where I've been around for 10 years."
Part of the company's success can be attributed to the fact that it has been able to ride several waves of popular culture. For example, he uses fresh and locally-sourced ingredients. Because he used less sugar in his spread than jams or jellies, it doesn't burn in the oven, something that led LEGOLAND California Resorts to seek out Bruhn's spread when it was developing its recipes for its "fruitizza." The theme park uses Carlsbad Gourmet spread on its peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and also uses one of his creations as its house dressing.
Bruhn also was able to team up with North County-based microbreweries, including Stone Brewing Co., to create specialty sauces featuring their craft beer.
Bruhn was able to grow his business by taking part in the Carlsbad Village Faire (presented by the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce) and by getting support from Chamber staff during his early days. It was at the November faire that a Westfield Carlsbad representative approached him about filling a spot in the mall for the holidays. Nine days later he opened the doors. His son, Jordan, is the store's manager.
"I can count the number of days off I've had on both hands," Bruhn said. "I work constantly, but it's fun and I enjoy it."
Bruhn said that part of the joy comes from the fact that he has found that it is easier to sell food than it was selling toys and computer software.
"If you make something really good, all you have to do is have customers try it," he said. "If they're not going to buy, there's nothing you can say to convince them, but if they like it they will buy. It's the beauty of the food industry."