Business Opportunities Weblog

August 19, 2008 by Rich Whittle | 2 Comments

The Commercial Appeal:

Sonny Reese admits that despite his Southern upbringing, he is not interested in barbecue — not for his business anyway.

The owner of Sonny Salt, Reese’s own brand of seasoning salt, believes his product fills a creative niche in an oversized market.

“We don’t want to be a barbecue seasoning, we want to be a seasoning salt,” said Reese, 62, of Memphis, recalling how business associates encouraged him to get into barbecue when he first decided to market Sonny Salt.

“Most barbecue seasoning has sugar in it and MSG or other products like that, and that makes it bad for you.”

Sonny Salt is a combination of sea salt, onion, garlic, red pepper, cumin, mustard, thyme, sage, black pepper, white pepper, paprika and, Reese says, “a pinch of Sonny.”

He created Sonny Salt to complement any food that uses regular salt and pepper and recommends it for foods such as asparagus, potatoes, salads, eggs, fish and kosher recipes.

“We bottle about half a ton a month, and we’re shooting for doing a ton a month,” Reese said.

Having followed his instincts in designing his product, Reese also took the road less traveled in his marketing, and that, he says, has kept his product in the market’s fore.

Reese visits grocery stores each week to demonstrate various recipes, laying on his grandfatherly charisma thicker than the Sonny Salt on his grilled portobellos.

He said the personal touch makes customers appreciate his product, which is essential since his main competition comes from nationally marketed spices like McCormick.

“It’s easy to sell the product once people taste it,” he added. “Then I’ve got them.”

Photo by The Commercial Appeal.

In Customer Service, Entrepreneurship, Small Biz | 2 Comments