Today we’d like to introduce you to Victoria Taylor.
A native of Providence, RI, Victoria attended Harvard University where she graduated with a degree in Physics. After earning her MBA from the Wharton School of Business, she worked as a product manager for the Kingsford Products Company where she managed the national roll-out of KC Masterpiece BBQ sauce. She later joined Welch’s where she managed the company’s bottled juice business and authored the Welch’s Health and Nutrition Marketing Initiative.
Yearning to pursue a career that combined her lifelong passion for cooking with her business experience, she left corporate life to start Victoria Gourmet, Inc. in 1998. Since its inception, the company has enjoyed steady growth. Victoria Taylor’s Seasonings can be found at over 3,000 retail locations in North America. The company’s blends are purchased in bulk by several major restaurant chains in the United States.
Her products have been featured in many publications including The Boston Globe, The Boston Herald, O Magazine, Better Homes and Gardens, Food & Wine, Fancy Food & Culinary Products, Barbecue & Beverage Magazine, Specialty Food Magazine, Boston Women’s Business Journal, Coastal Living Magazine, The Washington Post, Country Living, and Ladies Home Journal.
Victoria Gourmet, Inc. is a member of the Specialty Food Association, The Massachusetts Specialty Food Association (MSFA), International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP), and Victoria is a past President of the Northeast Chapter of Les Dames d’ Escoffier.
She is the author of Because Flavor is everything ~ Recipes with Victoria Taylor’s Seasonings, a cookbook with over 140 of her original recipes. The company’s website, www.vgourmet.com is a great resource for her customers offering menus, recipes, cooking tips and gift ideas. She also maintains a blog at www.vgourmet.com/blog where she posts seasonal recipes and tips.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Key Challenges over the years:
1. Meeting Capital Needs
2. Building distribution in new markets
3. Keeping the Brand fresh and relevant
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Victoria Gourmet – what should we know?
Because Flavor is Everything.
I have successfully combined my lifelong passion for flavor with my years of business experience to found Victoria Gourmet, Inc. in 1998. The company sells a line of all natural seasoning blends, sea salts, gourmet ingredients, and peppercorns. Since its inception, the company has enjoyed steady growth and continuous distribution expansion. I have built a National Brand in the specialty food industry from the ground up.
Victoria Taylor’s Seasonings can be found at over 3,000 retail locations in North America including The Fresh Market, HomeGoods, Whole Foods, Market Basket, HEB, Jewel Osco, Meijer, TJMaxx, Marshalls, and Central Market. The company’s blends are also purchased in bulk by industrial and food service customers and several major restaurant chains in the United States including Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, Legal Sea Foods, and The Capital Grille.
The company has enjoyed much success by focusing on public relations rather than traditional advertising media. My products have been featured in many publications, including The Boston Globe, The Boston Herald, Better Homes and Gardens, Food & Wine, Fancy Food & Culinary Products, Barbecue & Beverage Magazine, Specialty Food Magazine, Boston Women’s Business Journal, Coastal Living Magazine, The Washington Post, Country Living, and Ladies Home Journal.
Victoria Gourmet is an industry leader in packaging design and product innovation. In July 2003, Victoria Taylor’s Culinary Salts of the World Collection was named Outstanding Food Gift by the National Association for Specialty Food Trade (NASFT). In April 2011, My new window tin design was nominated for the Sofi (Specialty Outstanding Food Innovation) award for Outstanding Innovation in Packaging Design or Function by the NASFT.
A Key to Success
My Seasonings are well differentiated from the competition. All of the carefully tested products are my formulas. The all natural, gluten free blends are formulated with low salt and a focus on larger piece size for higher volatile oil content that translates to more flavor. Special care and equipment is required to deliver this benefit consistently. This is a significant difference versus the finely ground (often highly salted) products commonly found in the market.
Victoria Gourmet is a nationally recognized innovator in the Specialty Food Industry. In the 14 years since the company’s founding, I have added many new products to the line and brought new concepts to the specialty seasoning marketplace. The company is credited with the first introduction of several product concepts including The Culinary Salts of the World Collection (NASFT Gold Winner for Outstanding Food Gift 2003) and the first in its category line of Brining Blends in 2005.
Victoria Gourmet connects directly with Consumers via the website (www.vgourmet.com), Facebook (11K fans and counting), Twitter (11K followers) and my blog (www.vgourmet.com/blog). The essence of the consumer connection is easy recipes and inspiring solutions for cooking with maximum flavor every day. The company maintains an ongoing commitment to recipe development as the foundation for connecting to consumers.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
My stockholders have been critical to my success. My management team is absolutely terrific.
Contact Info:
- Address: 17A Gill ST., #4
- Website: www.vgourmet.com
- Phone: 781 935 2100
- Email: vtaylor@vgourmet.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/victoria_gourmet/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/victoriagourmet
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/victoriagourmet
Getting in touch: BostonVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
