Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Albert Winschel. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Albert thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

My name is Albert Winschel. I am a retired Marine Corps veteran of OEF and OIF. I initially began gardening following a tour in Afghanistan where I was wounded and in need of something to act as a stress reliever. Not long after, I started to make hot sauces with peppers after my Aunt Lori brought some cayenne by for me to try. I started to pass them to friends and family and they became so popular that I thougt I should begin to sell them to fund my gardening hobby. I decided that I would add something a little different to the normal hot sauces and offer some with some unique ingredients like persimmon. I began Southern Siege Sauce Company, LLC. with the intention of bringing some unique southern flavors to people’s tables and giving people a little different perspective on Mississippi and its culture and as a side benefit, promote gardening as a way for veterans to deal with stress in a productive way. I have always felt that food can bring people together and that here, in Mississippi, we have a lot to offer that is often overlooked. I’d like to try and change people’s view of Mississippi through the art of sauce making.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I started gardening as a way to productively handle stress following a deployment with the Marines to Afghanistan where I was wounded in 2010. One day my Aunt Lori brought me some peppers to try out and I decided to try my hand at hot sauce. Soon after I started giving it to family and friends and it became so popular that I decided to start producing on a larger scale to sell and fund my hobby. I wanted my sauce to be different and to give people a little taste of Mississippi by using ingredients common in the south but not often used in sauce making like persimmons. I officially began Southern Siege Sauce Company, LLC. in 2019 and have for the most part been utilizing social media (Facebook and Instagram) to promote my company. My hope is that, through sauce making, I can promote my home state of Mississippi and also highlight the use of gardening as a method for my fellow veterans to handle stress in a healthy and productive way.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

I have always been frugal in most aspects of my life although, admittedly, I will splurge on food when I travel so I can get a taste of local fair and an insight into the people and place I am visiting. When I began my business I decided that I would cover the startup costs out of my own pocket and then the business would have to fund itself. I figured this would let me know if it was a viable idea and also keep it from being a drain on my family’s resources. Normally I would say this was an unnecessarily frugal approach but COVID lock down occurred not long after I officially formed Southern Siege. Had I opened a store front out of the starting gate, I would likely have had to close up shop not long after. Through my approach I began with the basic tools to make and bottle my sauce and as I saved money from the sales I began to improve my equipment and garden for production. This has allowed slow but steady growth and given me time to plan the future of the company without stressing about my or it’s finances.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I have always been one to make sure I had a plan and had looked at all the scenarios that I could imagine might play out before I made a move. With starting my company I had to get out of my comfort zone and take a chance. I could have kept making sauce on a smaller scale just to pass to family and friends and left it at that. I saw an opportunity to start something and, hopefully, start to give back to my home town of Vicksburg, MS and take part in its revitalization. That’s not to say that I have abandoned planning my next moves, but I’ve learned that some risks are worth taking and that even when they don’t pan out you can always pivot or adapt to whatever new reality you find yourself in.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/southernsiegesauce/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SouthernSiegeSauceCo

Image Credits
Mae Justice Photography (family picture)