Today we’d like to introduce you to Jimmy Mitchell.
Alright, thank you for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My background has been working 30+ years as a Chef in several Hotels, Hospitals and, care facilities, Ass. Dietary Supervisor. I started out working in McDonalds as a grill cook in the late 80’s. My wife & I had our own catering business & we managed a food truck in early 2000. We also co-owned a restaurant. This is where I created my first sauce, WooHoo Sauce.
From there the sauce became in high demand & customers encouraged me to bottle it. I began the journey with $350 buying containers & creating my labels. Months later, I wanted specific seasonings to highlight my creative dishes, so I bought a bunch of spices & started creating in my test kitchen (at home). From there I created a total of 4 original signature spices & a Hot Sauce. So I ventured out and launched J Mitchell’s Spices & Sauces LLC in April of 2018.
The first store that gave me an opportunity was a Fish Market that supplied fish for my restaurant. From there I got connected with the Columbus, Urban League which was a resource that helped me put my legs on my business. As of today, my products are in 7 locations & working on major retail chains.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
No, it has not been a smooth road. Starting a business from scratch is hard work, especially when you are doing everything yourself. I have learned that when you have a vision for a business, you are responsible to do whatever’s necessary to make it happen.
One of the misconceptions about starting a business is, we depend on others to make it happen for us. Some of my challenges were: being overwhelmed with paperwork, learning about the different certifications & filling out the paperwork, figuring out how to structure things, not having enough finances to do what I need, how to market the business, finding the most economic suppliers for inventory, finding businesses that my products would be a good fit for, and the list goes on…
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My business is my passion & full time job. I am sold out to doing whatever is needed to make this business successful.
At this time, I do everything that concerns this business, from marketing, finances, fulfillment, shipping, delivery… This is what I do.
What sets me apart from others is the unique bold flavors and multi-use of my products that are just as good as other name brands. I am most proud that my products were born from scratch, making them stand out from the rest. I want the readers to know that as a minority in this field. Again, I believe that my product is just as good as any major brand on the market and that J Mitchell’s Spices & Sauces will become a household name.
Why, because God has blessed me to create and perfect spices and sauces that encompass enough flavors to enhance a myriad of traditional recipes. The diversity in J Mitchell’s unique combinations allows each spice and sauce to transition any dish into a truly exceptional dining experience.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
What matters most to me is that my products are consistent and that everyone receives a great experience from cooking with my products.
Why? Customer satisfaction and a great product is my number one goal.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.chefjmitchell.com
- Instagram: @chefjmitchell65
- Facebook: @chefjmitchell
Image Credits
Erin Gregory
