Specialty Food Magazine is the leading publication for retailers, manufacturers and foodservice professionals in the specialty food trade. It provides news, trends and business-building insights that help readers keep their businesses competitive.
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over who was more Italian. It didn't make sense to me," Hirschkopf says. The company went on to create a line of unique sauces, includ- ing heirloom tomato sauce, golden tomato sauce, butternut squash sauce, wild mushroom sauce, and more. "Our new line was a hit and became much larger than our hot sauce line." The consumer bases for Dave's Gourmet's new lines and brand designs differ somewhat from each other, making marketing a bit of a challenge. "Our new line of cookie butters is, again, a slight departure from our core, but we hope that once again we will hit the market with items that are different and that consumers will love," he says. He notes that the differing brands and designs also have a real advantage. "This has driven more marketing expense and more work around branding," he admits. But in the end, he says, "it has been worth the cost as the company overall has became larger, more prof- itable and a more exciting place to be." Keep Evolving Ari Weinzweig, co-owner and founding partner of Zingerman's, believes signature items should evolve, rather than fade away. "Can a signature item become outdated? Yes. But when you drop it you're asking for a lot of trouble," he says. "We prefer to build up around it. These items then become our future signature items." That true signature success demands being in it for the long haul, Weinzweig says. "It's common for retailers and chefs to get tired of some products. If a product is old-fashioned and isn't the future, it's okay," he explains. "You start working on tomor- row's breadwinners today. It takes at least two to three years' work to build those items up. Start with six and two might work out. If there are signa- ture items you've tired of, drop them to the back of the case or the bottom shelf. Your long- time customers can still find them and there's room for the new ideas." Denise Shoukas is a contributing editor to Specialty Food Magazine. Orange apricot marmalade from a 200-year-old family recipe has helped build the Sarabeth's brand. Navigate Growth Carefully Bill and Sarabeth Levine launched New York City–based Sarabeth's in 1981 from a 200-year-old family recipe for orange apricot mar- malade. From the very beginning, its signature product has helped build the Sarabeth's brand and turn their business into a multi- award-winning specialty food and restaurant enterprise. "For us, the most important aspect of a signature dish or product is expanding the brand awareness," says Bill Levine, CEO. "Sarabeth's Legendary Spreadable Fruit is definitely the signature product line, starting with the iconic orange apricot marmalade that started our business." The marmalade is the third-best retail seller for Sarabeth's, and its presence extends to the Sarabeth's restaurant menus. Levine says the restaurants serve a number of dishes he considers signature offerings, such as the pumpkin waff le, Goldilocks scrambled eggs, and the Fat and Fluffy French Toast, all of which work in conjunc- tion with the retail line of spreads. Keeping that signature identity in focus can help drive direc- tion and reinforce the brand. A challenge when growing the business "is maintaining the sense that everything works together," Levine says. "Since we are so popular for breakfast and lunch, we [primar- ily] base our brand extensions on those meals." Consider Breaking the Mold While many companies have found success in keeping a tight rein on how they define their brands and signature items, Dave's Gourmet has taken a different path. Initially, founder Dave Hirschkopf found success with a hot sauce line that was exceptionally hot. "The chal- lenge was that I had way too many ideas of other products that I really wanted to launch and I was a bit frustrated by how slow- turning the hot sauce category was and is," he explains. Taking inspiration from the success of his existing line, he began plans for the next: pasta sauces. "When I looked at pasta sauce, I saw a sea of red sauce with the same basic seven f lavors in most all the brands, who all battled 72 ❘ SPECIALTY FOOD MAGAZINE specialtyfood.com PHOTO: SARABETH'S PHOTO: DAVE'S GOURMET Dave's Gourmet broke out of its signature hot sauce line with products like pasta sauce.