We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sarah Cohen a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Sarah thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?

Looking back, I can see how my family’s history in Florida and love of food and fresh produce all influenced me to launch Sarah’s Slow Jam. I am a 3rd generation Floridian. My great-grandparents moved to Florida and opened a produce market in Flamingo Park, a neighborhood just south of downtown West Palm Beach. My grandparents and parents always had fruit trees in their yards and I grew up on local produce. Palm Beach County has a major agricultural industry- sugar, corn, lettuce, strawberries and more are grown here. We are so lucky to have such abundance here in our backyards!
In 2010, I was waiting for my Bar results (a stressful time to be sure!) and I needed a hobby. I had never made jam, but preserving fruits to enjoy year-round appealed to me. My parents have a mango tree that has prolific yields- so I learned to make jam. Fortunately, my family likes to try new things, so I played around with sweet and spicy combinations like Mango Raspberry Jam and Mango Jalapeno Jam. For about 10 years, I gave the jam away as gifts. Over time, I was encouraged by friends and family. to sell the jam. When I lived in DC for 2 years, I entered my jams in the local fair and took 3rd place with a Peach and Prosecco Jam and a Raspberry Chipotle Pepper Jam. These awards helped me build confidence that I could maybe sell the jams one day!
In March 2020, I opened Sarah’s Slow Jam as a home-based business and e-commerce site operating under Florida cottage laws. I was able to start small, making the jams at home with the pots and pans I already had. I relied heavily on word of mouth and social media to share the products. I joined a few pop-up markets in for the 2020 holiday season and then committed to a farmer’s market for the 2021-22 season to grow the business.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers?

Sarah’s Slow Jam creates seasonal and small-batch gourmet jams and jellies.

We stand out by our high quality and unique flavor combinations. Bring your friends and family together around the table to enjoy enjoy biscuits with our Tangerine Marmalade or dress up a burger with our Balsamic Onion Jam!

I have picked strawberries on a Saturday and made strawberry jam on Sunday, preserving that fresh, peak-of-season flavor. We are all about celebrating seasonal flavors and making meals memorable with our gourmet products.

Jams and jellies come in 10.5 oz jars and our Florida Orange Marmalade comes in a 5 oz jar. Items can be customized with a label for a wedding favor, corporate gift, bridal shower favor and more!

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

Authenticity! Authenticity! Authenticity!

Also, Teddy Roosevelt was right when he said “Comparison is the thief of joy.”. It’s ok to grow slowly and stay true to yourself and your brand. Authenticity is everything.

We are all prone to looking at someone else’s stats on social media and feel that flash of jealousy, but trust the road you’re on. For me, it’s knowing that 10 quality customers is more valuable that 100 (or 1000) disengaged followers. It takes time to launch and build that clientele base. But having true blue clientele that support your business will always win out over flash-in=the-pan success.

I also strongly believe in collaboration- I love working with fellow local businesses that have natural overlap with my products. Again- it comes back to authenticity- are you working with a business or influencer because it complements your products? What will your customers get out of the joint venture? Is it a natural overlap- or is it forced? If I collaborated with say a fly-fishing outfitter who has 100K+ followers, is that going to feel like incongruous to my brand? Yes. If I collaborated with a local bakery, that feels much more in line with my products.

Do you sell on your site, or do you use a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc?

I sell on my site based off a Wix platform. I moved to Wix this year, and so far have really enjoyed its features. I do not sell on Amazon at this time.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.SarahsSlowJam.com
• Instagram: @SarahsSlowJam
• Facebook: @SarahsSlowJam

Image Credits
Kitchen photos: Sandra Ransdell Photography Peach Charcuterie board on a red patterned quilt: Sandra Ransdell Photography Orchard photos, including picnic on pink and white tablecloth: Kelly Robinson Photo