🔒Abby Freethy puts a modern spin on Maine staples with Northwoods Gourmet Girl

Home goods, simplicity, honesty, one jar at a time. These Maine qualities intrigued Pennsylvania native Abby Freethy, who visited and subsequently moved to Maine to tap the state's rustic qualities. In 2005 she started Northwoods Gourmet Girl in Greenville, putting a modern spin on traditional kitchen staples to create charred onion ketchup and Maine raspberry rhubarb jam.

Freethy, 39, now sells to more than 16 outlets, including the Bar Harbor Inn, Aurora Provisions in Portland and Skillins Greenhouses in Falmouth, as well as various stores in New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Pennsylvania, and on her website. Last May Freethy opened a storefront in Belfast and plans to make more kitchen items like flatware and tablerunners.

She talked to Mainebiz recently by phone about the local food movement and the seemingly insatiable demand for unique, homemade edibles. An edited transcript follows.

Mainebiz: How did you evolve from a college textile design major to starting a food company?

Abby Freethy: I have an eclectic background. I cooked when I was young and knew I wanted to be a chef. I finished school at the Culinary Institute of America. But my son Dustin is the reason. At the beginning of my pregnancy, all I could eat was french fries with ketchup. I had been working as an executive chef at a small inn and slipped and fell five months into my pregnancy and got third-degree burns, so I slowed down. That's when I thought of the company, in May 2005. I had tried the ketchup at the inn, but decided to formulate my own, including charred onion ketchup. I read a lot about ketchup and wanted to make a safe, honest, true and pure product. For the jam, my grandfather likes strawberry and rhubarb, but raspberry is tarter and goes well with rhubarb.

MB: With the foodie movement in Maine, how did you define your product line, including at your Belfast store?

AF: We sell all natural pantry staples, one jar at a time. That's our cornerstone business. I'm also making some home goods, like clothing for girls in the kitchen. I wear a skirt in the kitchen. I paint and transfer the design to fabric for tablecloths and table runners. By mid-summer I hope to be selling plates and flatware, then cutting boards. Home goods are simple and relatable to food.

MB: How are you handling your growth?

AF: At our highest time, we have six employees, including retail. We're breaking even. We had 27 products, but I'm scaling back to 20. I'm redefining our growth, looking at how to get to the next step, at expenses and at holding onto raw materials. I'm working with a farmer in Parkman this year to grow cucumbers and hops for us. We manufacture beer, Greenville Grit IPA. We're considering a second, small year-round store in coastal Maine.

MB: How did you fund the company?

AF: I bootstrapped the company. I got a $50,000, Community Development Block Grant that funded my commercial kitchen, which is complete now. I learned my business skills from reading and as the company grew, and I had help from some industry people. I'm not afraid to ask questions.

MB: How do you compete with Stonewall Kitchen, which also sells high-quality, specialty food products?

AF: We are where Stonewall Kitchen was 15 years ago. I want it all.

MB: What do you mean by 'all'?

AF: We are about to shoot a pilot cooking show up here for whoever picks it up.

MB: What are your biggest challenges?

AF: We need more money for warehouse space. Cash flow is our biggest enemy. Our challenges are managing our growth, defining our next steps and distribution. Branding also is important. I want to build a strong economic community here and bring back young families to the region, any small way I can. We have a strong food movement in Maine and I'm passionate about that.