Though probably not a surprise to loyal customers, the owners of Mountain Feed and Farm Supply in Ben Lomond were taken aback when they learned they had been named regional small business of the year.
The Small Business of 2017 honor was given earlier this month to about 80 private business owners out of roughly 3 million small businesses in the state.
The all-purpose feed-and-farm supply store on Highway 9 was honored this month as the 29th Assembly District’s winner.
“I wasn’t expecting it at all,” said Jorah Roussopoolous, who owns the store with wife Andi. “It’s sort of the American dream.”
The elaborate feed store was nominated by occasional customer Mark Stone, Assemblyman for the 29th District.
“Owners Jorah and Andi Roussopoolous provide our region with invaluable resources for sustainable independent living and homesteading,” Stone said.
“They are an important part of our local economy.”
The business owners traveled to the Sheraton Grand Hotel in Sacramento to receive the honor, and were given a tour of the State Capitol by Stone.
“It was a warm welcome,” said Roussopoolous. “It made me proud to be a Californian.”
Customers travel to Mountain Feed and Farm Supply from as far away as Carmel Valley and San Francisco.
The store, composed of a warren of connected smaller buildings, serves as a hub for classes, nursery items, small-scale food production, housewares and sustainable methods of farming.
“It feels like home,” said Ben Lomond resident Cheryl Martin, who has been shopping at the store for 10 years. “I can come here for just about anything.”
It wasn’t always that way.
When the Roussopoolous couple purchased the property in 2004 it was not much to speak of: just the former empty site of then-vacant Ben Lomond Feed.
It would be nice to say that Roussopoolous, in their mid-20s at the time, had a dream of building their future. Not so fast.
“We were forced to figure out how we would pay the mortgage,” remembered Roussopoolous, who began by opening a small feed store. “It was just youthful enthusiasm.”
It wasn’t long before the outgoing couple’s counter became a magnet for residents, who conversed about small-town news on a first-name basis.
“It’s not just a store; it’s a community hub,” said Roussopoolous, who lives in Bonny Doon with Andi and children Ember and Reese.
Little by little, a vision began to take shape. Nursery pots appeared, the small gift shop (where the couple had lived in the beginning) was transformed, and fences and gates sprouted.
These days, the busy store employs 30 workers during peak months — full-time employees who are provided healthcare insurance at no charge.
Lisa Berg, a customer since the store opened, treks over from Los Gatos to do her shopping and take her 14-year-old cat, Earl, to the on-site vet.
“It’s worth the drive,” she said. “I love the eclectic feel and everything is so high quality.”
Roussopoolous said it’s his employees who should receive the award.
“I have amazing people, past and present,” he said. “They deserve 100 percent of the credit.”
