Q&A with Jessica Frye, owner of Wholesome Living Marketplace
By George Berkheimer for The Bedford Gazette
Wholesome Living Marketplace is a family-owned business specializing in natural, organic grocery items with an emphasis on health and wellness. The store carries a wide variety of farm fresh products, from local-raised beef, lamb and pork to eggs, raw milk and fresh produce. Owner Jessica Frye sources items as close to the store as possible to help the local economy, support other local businesses, and encourage more sustainable, healthy lifestyles.
Q: How did Wholesome Living Marketplace get its start?
Frye: This business started after my mother visited a Sprouts Market during her travels out west. She liked the idea of fresh, wholesome products that were better for you and thought it was something Bedford needed. I had been the manager of a bookstore in Everett, and she asked if I wanted to manage the store when it opened in 2008. How do you tell your mom no?
Q: What can your customers expect?
Frye: A lot of people don’t realize that we’re a full grocery. We don’t just carry food, but also household items, cleaning supplies, personal hygiene, health and beauty products, and a full line of supplements as well. People sometimes get an idea about what we are when they hear the name, and tell us they’re surprised at the variety of our products we carry when they actually visit.
Q: How do you decide what to sell?
Frye: We focus on natural and organic, meaning 99% of our products do not contain high fructose corn syrup, genetically modified organisms, artificial flavors or colors, chemical preservatives and that sort of thing. We try to support small startup entrepreneurs and products from Pennsylvania.
Q: Do you source a lot of products locally?
Frye: Most of our meats are local. We work with Faith and Fortitude Farms in Everett, Hospitality Spring Farm in Bedford and Savage Mountain Farm in Somerset County. We get honey from Huckle Bee Farms in Bedford. Fritz Family Farm in Everett, and Daisy Meats in Everett and Breezewood. We’ve carried Clover Creek Cheese Cellar’s raw milk and cheese products from Williamsburg since the first year we opened. We just started working with a farmer in Juniata County who sells his own braided garlic, which makes a beautiful gift for home cooks.
Q: Is it challenging to operate a store like this in a rural area?
Frye: We definitely have a core of customers who have been with us from the beginning. I do feel we are needed, and our customers tell us that, especially people who travel here every year and visit similar stores where they live, people who have cabins or camp, or who visit Omni Bedford Springs Resort. They’re a good bump to our morale.
Q: Do you carry anything unique that’s harder to find?
Frye: We have Keystone Cultures kombucha on tap all the time. We often have customers tell us they’ve discovered something they’ve never seen before or have had a hard time finding. It’s usually something we consider an everyday item because we always stock it. That always makes us feel good.
Q: How do you get involved with the community?
Frye: We belong to the Bedford County Chamber of Commerce and Downtown Bedford Inc. I also serve on the Bedford County Library Board. We get occasional requests from restaurants who are looking for special ingredients. We also place special orders for customers. We donate when we can to all sorts of local fundraisers.
Q: Why did you choose a Bedford location?
Frye: This is where we were born and raised, so we really didn’t think of trying it anywhere else. Bedford has a comfortable small town feel that brings people back. I love that we have all four seasons here. I think there’s something beautiful about each season for people to come and see and experience. You still see trees and fields and backroads. That’s all part of the charm and hopefully it stays that way for a long time.