Meet The Makers Mini Interview: JAMPACKED
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JAMPACKED Mini Interview
For March’s Mini Interview we’re chatting with Mark Hitchon and Lalena Scott of JAMPACKED jams! Toast with jam, PB&J… jam is a classic, always-around food, and the JAMPACKED folks have done that thing we love to see: they’ve taken a kitchen staple and made it more nutritious, more natural, and really local. Inspired by their family and community, they’ve stuffed tons of love into their jars, along with all kinds of superfoods and seeds, and delicious grown-in-BC berries. They’ve created a jam that is so low in sugar it’s actually keto friendly! Even if you aren’t doing keto, in addition to low sugar, you’ll benefit from all the awesome vitamins and nutrients, and you’re going to love the really fabulous taste of these spreads. Read on to learn more about their company philosophy, favourite flavour, and their super active life on our beautiful West Coast.
Share your story with us in a 150 words or less.
Our story is pretty simple. Our business plan is simple too. We spend our time cultivating ways to enrich people's nutritional lives starting with the foods they/we eat on a daily basis and then finding ways to make these foods healthier. So in regards to JAMPACKED jams our focus was getting families away from conventional "candy jams" and into a cleaner, more wholesome product. It just seemed wrong, to us, for families to start their day by eating foods high in sugars! Plus we wanted to be as local as possible when it came to the ingredients and also to incorporate other health supporting ingredients to the morning breakfast. So we added 19 more 'superfoods' to our JAMPACKED jams. Living in BC allowed us to take advantage of the local farm community and the amazing berries that they grow
Out of all your products, which is your personal favourite and why?
I must say I am pretty partial to our BARNYARD BATCH jam. Yes we use fun names for our flavours instead of conventional berry names ! Barnyard Batch is a medley of strawberries, blueberries and raspberries. Because we DO NOT ADD any sugar I tend to put way more jam on my toast and yogurt in the morning. I get to be crazy with my jam now and I love that... so do my low carb and Keto friends . Hey I have more friends now !
Getting from an idea to a small business is a lot of work! When did it first sink in for you that ‘this is really happening’?
Almost 20 years ago we started on our rewarding journey of giving you better choices when it comes to healthier foods and have created a variety of well received superfoods. The best lesson we learned pretty early on is to listen to our 'real boss'... the customer! We have been gifted by the honesty and guidance that our customers have given us over the years. Truth is , as owners, we only think we know what is best . Funny how much smarter and more educated people are today. They expect and want more when it comes to the health of their families and we want to be a part of that journey.
What motivates you on a day-to-day basis?
Our company is named after my favourite person in the world... my daughter. No my daughter is not named Jampacked but Mackenzie—so we named our main company that produces our JAMPACKED jams, DADDY LOVES MACKENZIE . So we are motivated to make amazing superfoods that give us the same kind of pride that our children give us. We all love our children and we love our relationship that we are creating with our customers. When Moms get back to us telling us about their children embracing our jams it gives us great pride in knowing we are helping.
What’s your favourite thing about the town or city you live in?
In our case it's not about our town but VANCOUVER ISLAND ! The list of favourite things is all but endless and we are so fortunate to be able to live in this beautiful place.
Describe your ideal Sunday, including your breakfast.
Seems lately that every morning feels like Sunday morning ! Our mornings are so regimented that they have become almost boring . Early to rise starts with 30 minutes of pushups and sit ups ( truly dislike both of these exercises) , then a 45 minute bike ride and finally off to the local gym for another 45 minutes. Typically at around noon we eat our first food. Even our breakfast is always the same yet we love it ! Morning happiness comes from doing what works for us and that is why it is always the same. Beyond that we live on the ocean and waking up to our liquid backyard is beyond ideal.
Find JAMPACKED : On Their Website | On Instagram | On Facebook