LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- What started as a pandemic garden has grown into a storefront in Old Louisville, where Garden Girl Foods is bringing fresh food to those who need it most.
The West Oak Street business hosted an official ribbon cutting Wednesday.
"While everyone else was buckled down for COVID, we were gardening and picking and moving," said Whitney Powers who turned the hobby into a business. "The past year, as crazy as it's been, I think it's going to get more crazy this year. But we're excited and we're ready."
She's ready to serve fresh, healthy food in her store that is part grocery store, part restaurant and part community garden. They grow organic, non-GMO foods and preserve them for customers to enjoy.
"I would describe our store as Whole Foods meets Cracker Barrel," she said. "It reminds me of my great grandmother's home which is my safe space."
The storefront is something this neighborhood desperately needs, a food desert with few fresh food options nearby.
"People can't always drive the seven blocks or the 10 blocks or walk, and so by putting it here right in Old Louisville and having fresh options, grocery options and ready to eat options all in one and being able to accept EBT, it was important," Powers said.
Garden Girl foods is Kentucky's only black-owned commercial food manufacturer. And while she's the first, she doesn't intend to be the last.
"I hope to teach that to anyone else who has a business and wants to grow it, especially a food business," Powers said.
Alisha Brown, who attended Wednesday's opening to support Powers, said she has her own dessert business and hopes to follow in Powers' footsteps.
"It is motivation, motivation, motivation," Brown said. "I can't wait. Her slogan is 'who you work with' and I'm grateful she even considered me to be in her store."
Garden Girl Foods will also offer gardening and cooking classes for kids. It's located at 501 W. Oak St.
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