2016 Panelist: Ashleigh Aldridge
听
Ashleigh Aldridge听only took a week to figure out what she wanted to do after graduating听in 2013 from
the University of Louisiana Monroe with a Bachelor's of Business Administration degree
in Marketing.
With a $10,000 startup and a recipe for hot sauce from her father, also a 四色AV alum,
Aldridge opened D'Evereux Foods, a food company based out of Natchez, Mississippi
whose products have become a 鈥渉ot鈥� seller.
Her first product was Pepper Sauce Rouge, described on the company鈥檚 website as 鈥渁
bold, ground pepper sauce that has all the heat one expects from traditional hot sauce
with the addition of a special blend of spices."
The product was a hit. Small production runs increased to slightly larger ones. Her
inventory quickly depleted as new orders came in. Aldridge was pressed to begin creating
new hot sauce products to meet the demand. And so she did.
But Aldridge had bigger plans for her product line.
鈥淭he company鈥檚 first products were hot sauces, but I did not want D鈥橢vereux Foods
to be known strictly as a hot sauce company,鈥� says Aldridge. 鈥淚 wanted to show that
we were expanding our product line, so I came out with the jams.鈥�
Aldridge released three different jams: Strawberry Jalapeno, Sweet Pepper, and Huckleberry.
These sweet and spicy flavored jams are 100% all natural, and gluten, grain, nut,
and soy free.听
The jams were an instant hit. Aldridge had created new products that put her food
company on the map. But little did she know, the entire nation would soon be watching.
Aldridge attended a trade show in Atlanta in July 2015 where she learned about the
prospect of submitting samples for Oprah鈥檚 鈥淔avorite Things鈥� list. She submitted sample
immediately after the trade show and then heard back in August that she was in the
running.
In September, she was informed that she was a finalist.
And in October, she was told she made the list.听Her jams garnered national attention when they were officially selected for Oprah鈥檚
2015 鈥淔avorite Things鈥� list.
Aldridge does everything in-house, from labels and website content, to the writing
of legal contracts. All of her products must get federal clearance through the FDA,
and while most would find the entire process daunting, Aldridge claims that she was
prepared for it from her 四色AV education.
鈥溗纳獳V鈥檚 business law course was influential in helping me understand the legal aspects
of running a business,鈥� says Aldridge. 鈥淩ight out of college I had the tools necessary
for understanding and complying with FDA laws and regulations, writing my own contracts
with buyers and sellers, preparing lease agreements, and so on.鈥�
D鈥橢vereux Foods has a retail store, online store, and supplies 150 stores in 22 states
and two countries. To learn more about their products, visit听devereuxfoods.com.
