It’s been a quarter-century since Bradley Bennett started pickling vegetables as a hobby to give out as holiday treats, and more than a decade since his Pacific Pickle Works (PPW) started kicking out countless jars from a warehouse on Santa Barbara’s Eastside.
His creatively named pickled veggies — from tradition-touching cucumbers like Mother’s Puckers to spicy green beans like Jalabeaños and palate-pleasers like Asparagusto!s — became immediate hometown heroes, as did his drink mixers, especially the Bloody Mary elixir. After early debuts at C’est Cheese and Tri-County Produce, PPW’s tart treats took over the shelves of Whole Foods and other high-end grocers as well as restaurants and bars around the West Coast.
Despite such distribution and critical praise, success in the consumer packaged goods industry doesn’t come so easily. “It’s a tough business to make any money in,” said Bennett, who admits that his desire to stay in Santa Barbara doesn’t help. Being in our relative backwater makes it hard to work with bigger supply and shipping companies, yet the costs of real estate and living are higher.
“It’s a very hands-on business with very low margins,” he said. “I’m not just gonna build a facility in Arizona and staff it without being there. It would be hard for me to do that.”…