Founded in 2001
$250,000 in sales
25 part-time, 4 full-time employees

Jessica and Mataio’s honeymoon in Europe, in conjunction with previous experiences in Bellingham, led them to believe they could create a business that embraced their community with an emphasis on a European lifestyle. “As we interpreted it, the European lifestyle meant keeping your money at home by shopping in your neighborhood stores daily, making travel and vacation a bigger priority, a stronger involvement of family in one’s business, long-standing employee/employer relationships, and a commitment to seasonal cooking and eating,” says Jessica.

In the Fall and Winter of 2000 the couple researched and brainstormed in Europe. Ciaò Thyme incorporated in April 2001 and began with just $6000 in sales.  2004 celebrated $250,000 in sales. They now employ 25 part time and 4 full time employees, and wages are based on the living wage not the minimum wage.  They have chosen to grow their business slowly, not taking on more than they could handle with a small staff. “We watched other businesses in our industry diminish quality in order to grow quickly and we were not willing to sacrifice our reputation for growth,” Jessica says. Since many of their clients are one-time users of their service, word of mouth continues to be their best form of advertisement.

They have made it their goal to use Slow Food and Sustainable Connections as their guides in doing business. Employees are treated as team members, including the roles of the owners. They offer health insurance to full time employees. All employees are paid based on the national living wage. They share all tips received by the company based on hours worked.  Employees often leave an evening event with leftover food and flowers (a nice perk for the college-aged servers).

Community organizations and local non-profits are a top priority for Ciaò Thyme. They donated over $20,000 in goods and services in 2004.  One event raised over $10,000 for the Depot Market project - a permanent Farmers’ Market structure slated to be built this fall.

With a degree in Environmental Education, Jessica has shaped the values of the chefs and cooks of the Ciaò Thyme kitchen and strengthened the direct contact with their local farmers.  Their preferred distribution method is directly through local farms, bakeries, artists, and small artisan companies. Using mainstream food distributors does not further their goal to support local businesses and sustainable food practices. The staff also does their best to compost kitchen waste to local farm animals, recycle, send leftover food to the local Mission or Food Bank, and encourage employees to carpool to jobsites.  

While they see many opportunities for diversification, time is the biggest challenge. Their future goal is to own a ‘community kitchen’ with a focus on food education and their local farmers.  They hope to spur artisan food development, and encourage its appreciation.  “We would like to be known as a business without walls, limited only by the changing seasons and the hours in a day,” Jessica adds.

Learn more about Ciaò Thyme Catering
1101 N State Street, Suite 105, Bellingham, WA 98225
(360) 733.1267