Colonel De Gourmet Herbs & Spices
Colonel De Gourmet Herbs & Spices opened at Findlay Market in 2006 by De Stewart, previously appointed the Kentucky Colonel. Before setting up shop at Findlay Market, De had his own cooking show for a Northern Kentucky cable channel. His show highlighted how spices and herbs could change the way we cook and flavor everyday food. The cooking show boomed with success and viewers wanted to know how they could purchase spices and blends they saw being used on the show. Shortly after, De began setting up at farmers markets in the area to sell his products. After selecting a name and logo, Colonel De Gourmet Herbs & Spices was born!
Ashley Stewart, son of De and current owner of Colonel De Gourmet Herbs & Spices, was enlisted in the army when Colonel De Gourmet Herbs & Spices opened at the Market. Ashley then began working for his father in 2009. After a few years working for the family business, Ashley left to pursue other careers. After discovering his father’s health concerns, Ashley returned to the family business a year before De passed, and he took over full-time in 2018.
Colonel De Gourmet Herbs & Spices has done two different rounds of growing. When the business was first starting out, it grew and franchised to many different locations, however, the locations were too small for what they were doing. As a result, Colonel De Gourmet Herbs & Spices closed a few locations and now have locations in Ft. Thomas, Findlay Market, and Newport on the Levee where they do all the production. “Things have not just grown here. Things have changed a lot, but at the same time, it’s still the same,” says Ashley. While the Covid-19 pandemic affected a lot of businesses, Ashley says that it really helped the online sales increase.
Ashley values his hardworking staff and loyal customers. He has regulars from 2009 who still get the same products they’ve always been getting. “I always want the customers and employees to be happy, with high quality and low prices. Taking care of my employees is a priority, and I’m really striving for Colonel De to be a company full of owners because everyone has an opinion and new ideas. We all work together.”
To Ashley, coming up with new spices and blends is pretty easy. “Say a customer has a recipe, and it’s some crazy thing that they won’t find all the ingredients for - we can either blend together spices or get whatever they need in a small amount. It’s like bartending but with spices.” With new blends, Ashley always experiments to try new stuff to see if it sticks. They hand-blend everything in Newport with sea-salt and no additives.
Whenever Ashley travels, he makes sure to check out other markets in the area, but to him, nothing beats Findlay Market. “Findlay Market is such a cool experience. Even though it’s not a hidden gem in Cincinnati, people always tell me that they haven’t been here in about 15 years! I love my regulars and standing outside of Blue Oven Bakery to get the soft pretzels. It’s just such an awesome place to be.”
Published December 2021