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In less than a decade Rachael and Rob Myers have turned a traditional family pierogi recipe infused with their own innovative takes into a Little Foot Foods business that has outgrown its home for the third time.
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What started as a home business in September 2013 has grown to require a new 5,000-square-foot production and retail space and the addition of a second shift of workers.
“It feels a little unreal,” said Rachael Myers of the company’s rapid growth. “It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster at times.”
The Myers are currently renovating an Oldcastle facility with plans to move from their current Windsor location by July 1.
We have a distributor that does all of Ontario now
They started the business making Rachael Myers’ Polish grandmother’s recipe in her own kitchen for sale at the Walkerville Night and Downtown Farmer’s markets, the company now has six full-time employees, including the owners, and three part-time workers.
With the purchase of new production and freezing equipment, along with increased storage, Myers said the firm has more than tripled production potential. It will also require the hiring of about three additional employees to staff a second shift.
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Little Foot Foods’ top two sellers are pierogies and cabbage rolls. The firm on average produces 750 pounds of pierogies and 500 cabbage rolls per week.
“We really needed more freezer storage than what we have at our current site,” Rachael Myers said.
“Now we have infinite production capacity compared to what we could do with our older machine. We can also have someone else trained to do the production allowing Rob and I to handle other aspects of the business to grow it.”
In addition to the popular pierogies, Little Foot Foods offers other comfort foods such as cabbage rolls, mac and cheese, stuffed peppers, stews and meat loaf.
“I think the quality and the variety of flavors we offer, along with convenience, is the appeal to customers,” Rachael Myers said.
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“We try to use local cheeses, sauces and other products whenever we can. We do a lot of collaborations with other local businesses.”
Over its nine-year history, the business has seen a shift from the bulk of customers being individuals to most sales now being wholesale. Little Foods products can be found in some grocery stores and a variety of local shops and the company delivers for free on Fridays to individual homes in Essex County.
“We have a distributor that does all of Ontario now,” Myers said. “Our products are in Kingston, Collingwood, Oakville and all over southwestern Ontario.”
The business was also well positioned to ride out the COVID-19 pandemic with most sales not being in restaurants or in person at the Little Foot Foods retail storefront.
However, with the new location near the cluster of tool and die, mold making and industrial automation shops, Rachael Myers thinks there’s potential for more walk-in traffic.
“We’ll have a storefront for retail and we’re going to offer more hot lunch options,” Myers said.
“There’s not a lot of food options in the area and we’re better positioned for people in the county to access. We don’t yet have as many distribution outlets in the county as the city.”
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