Grand Rapids Downtown Market adds some "spice" with popular Saugatuck spice shop

As the list of foodie-oriented vendors in the new Grand Rapids Downtown Market continues to grow -- a bakery, an ice cream maker, a specialty food and wine shop, a coffee shop, a florist, and a butchery -- it seems only natural that a spice shop could bring it all together as a complete one-stop shopping experience.

Spice Merchants, a corporate and franchise spice seller based in Saugatuck, plans to have hundreds of its bulk spices, proprietary spice blends, and artisanal teas at the market when it opens in August.

"We'll pair well with everything at the market -- vegetables, olive oils, meats, coffee; we'll have fantastic spices and sugars that will go with everything being sold," says owner and founder Lisa Freeman. "Customer can buy large or small quantities. Everything is in a large jar with a label and lid. You tell me what you want, and I measure it into a bag. We sell as little as one-half ounce and more."

Spice Merchants' blends are from Freeman's own recipes, she says, adding that the blends contain no manmade fillers, artificial colors, or chemicals. Freeman says the spices only make one stop between the grower and her stores: the east coast, where the spices are cleaned and processed in a "clean warehouse" that's peanut-free and FDA-approved.

Spice Merchants' top sellers are Smoked Paprika, Hot Smoked Paprika, Black Truffle Sea Salt, Saugatuck Steak Rub (smoked paprika base, Worcestershire, garlic, sea salt, cracked black pepper), Raspberry Chipotle blend, Coffee Barbecue blend, and Tuscan Blend to add to olive oil for dipping bread.

"People can get healthy and fresh products (at the Downtown Market)," Freeman says. "It represents just a great wholesome venue where you can go to get everything. A passion for spices and cooking, that's what got me started. The idea of walking into a store and being able to have all kinds of spices at your fingertips in smaller quantities and more economically appealed to me."
 
Source: Lisa Freeman, Spice Merchants
Writer: Deborah Johnson Wood, Development News Editor