Nothing but the Best For a New Granola
Granola, the signature food of the 1960's, is finding new life in the 90's. And Debra Stark, the owner of the Natural Gourmet, a health-food store in Concord, Mass., is among those leading the change.
Unable to find a granola to suit her taste, Ms. Stark decided to make her own seven years ago. She ordered the finest organic ingredients she could find: oats, rye, wheat, barley, chocolate, dried fruits, several kinds of nuts -- including California almonds, her favorite -- and a special blend of Vermont maple syrup.
She began selling her creation in bulk and to local natural-food shops. The ingredients made the price steep: $4.99 a pound in bulk, $6.99 a pound in retail packages -- $1 more than other specialty organic granolas. 'I believe there are people out there willing to pay for something that tastes scrumptious,' she said.
Her latest receipts seem to indicate she was right. Ms. Stark, along with her sister-in-law, Mary Stark, created Stark Sisters Granola, whose products are now shipped around the world. The granola comes in five flavors: maple-almond, maple-chocolate-peanut, maple-raspberry-blueberry, maple-chocolate-berry and nutty-maple-molasses. In January 1995, the company shipped 500 pounds of granola; this January, it shipped 15,000 pounds.
Spins, a San Francisco-based marketing-information company, said that retail sales of cold cereals like granolas and mueslis sold in natural-foods stores will exceed $100 million in 1997, up 12 percent from 1996. Stark Sisters expects to have sales of more than $1 million this year, up from $500,000 last year.
The granola is available at the Natural Gourmet, 98 Commonwealth Avenue, Concord, Mass. 01742. Two-  or three-pound gift packs, for $13.95 or $19.95, plus shipping and handling, can be ordered from (800) 542-2898, or by fax from (508) 371-2930.
GLENN RIFKIN
At the Nation's Table: Concord, Mass.