Charleston Specialty Foods Finds New Home in West Ashley

Bess Anderson originally began selling her beans and rice in the Charleston Market in 1984. Originally known as Bess’ Beans, Anderson retired some years later and the company has had traded hands several times over the years. In the mid-’90s eventually became known as Charleston Specialty Foods when several additional brands and products were acquired.
Earlier this month, current owner Jonathan Ruman moved the local specialty food manufacturer to West Ashley in the Pierpont Shopping Center. “The location also works well for the distribution of our products throughout Charleston and the Lowcountry,” says Ruman, who also lives in West Ashley as well as much of the Charleston Specialty Foods staff.
Products are manufactured and marketed under the brand name “Charleston’s Own” and offerings include the benne wafers, cookies, pralines, taffy, preserves, and stone-ground grits along with rice, beans, and soup mixes. In addition, the company also distributes many local brands such as Mrs. Sassard’s, Barry’s BBQ Sauce, Doc Crombie’s Sauces, Charleston Bees & Honey, and Gillespie’s Peanuts. Products are sold through select retailers throughout the Lowcountry and beyond. Charleston Specialty Foods began distributing additional local artisanal food brands beginning in 2005 and continues today.
“Additional products have been added and discontinued over time,” says Ruman. “Today’s Charleston’s Own brand maintains the original beans rice and soup mixes that began in 1984 as well as many other products.”
While Ruman says that 98 percent of his business is wholesale distribution, plus a small amount of online sales, the new brick and mortar space includes a retail portion, which allows the public to look at the entire line of products and pick up a few harder to find items. “We also provide a lot of wedding favors including benne wafers, pecan pralines, taffy, and other items,” says Ruman. “The new space enables future brides or wedding planners to try and evaluate these items while planning for their event.”
According to Ruman, his most popular items are the cookies, which are baked on site.  “All benne wafers, Key lime, cheese zingers and Earl Grey yea cookies are perhaps the most well known Charleston’s Own products. Pecan pralines, saltwater taffy and stone ground grits are also very popular.”
Charleston Specialty Foods is located at 2408 Ashley River Rd Unit Q in the Pierpont Crossing shopping center. For more information, call 744-8991 or visit www.charlestonspecialtyfoods.com.