Many years ago, my wife and I thought we were heading to a French bistro in Raymond Maine. When we got there, we found The Good Life Market instead and simply fell in love with the place. – Ray Richardson
Q: Tell us about the market, what year did it open and what led you to start it?
A: Walt had grown up in a family business and had a dream to create that same experience for our young family, I had a soft spot for big, old buildings, and we shared a passion for food and wine. So when the building came up for sale in the spring of 2002, it just seemed like it was meant to be. We opened The Good Life Market in the spring of 2003, after having spent a year renovating the building, and have been running the business with the help and support of our families ever since.
Q. The Good Life is one of the most unique, if not the most unique, markets in Maine. You seem to have literally thousands of different items, most of which you cannot find in too many places. How do you approach choosing what kind of items to carry?
A: We like to support local producers; some vendors we find and some find us, but we’re committed to the promotion of Maine industry. For further afield products, we travel several times a year to trade shows to see and sample new products. Consumer desire is important to us, so we spend time researching trends, looking at up and coming products, and listening to our customer’s feedback to be sure we’re staying current. And of course, we do lots of taste testing ☺
Q: Your deli is one of the last few authentic delis in the region. From pastrami to ham to turkey, you create unique flavor combinations, combining ingredients that just seem to mesh. Who decides your menu and creates all these delicious sandwiches and salads?
A: Thanks so much! That’s me, Linda. I’ve always been a recipe fanatic; reading cookbooks like novels and dissecting dishes I enjoyed at restaurants over the years. I put together the sandwich menu shortly before we opened, by combining what I felt were classic ingredients in ways that were unique enough to engage people’s interest without being too unusual. I’m inspired by traditional pairings that get just a little offbeat, by new ingredients and methods, and by seasonal flavors and styles. Little known fact- I often come up with the name of the specials first, and build the ingredients to fit!
Q: You are located on Route 302 in Raymond, in the heart of the lakes region of Maine. This is a great location for the summer tourists and leaf-peepers in the fall, but your parking lot is full year ‘round. What do you believe makes you so popular with the customers?
A: We put the customers and customer service before all else. Walt and I are committed to remaining very hands on with the business for both our customers and our staff’s sake. We are 100% here for them, and I think the fact that the customers see our faces and feel our presence in the store makes the difference. We grew up locally, raised our children locally, and we’re involved with the local community. It’s all of us working together – Walt and I, the staff, the customers- that have made our business thrive.
Q: In the last few years, you began roasting your own coffee. We are starting to see the name Swift River Coffee popping up in stores around the area. Why did you start your own coffee brand and what inspired the name?
A: Coffee has been an area of passion for us for years – our first business in the 1990’s was an offsite coffee cart catering business called Catered Café. Once we had our feet on the ground with The Good Life Market, coffee seemed like the next logical place to focus our attention. In 2009, the building next to us went up for sale, one of our long-term employees had a growing interest in working with coffee, and our local coffee supplier was struggling to meet demand, so, again, things fell into place. We started with the vision of producing the freshest, most consistent, craft roasted coffee we could, catering to our own customers tastes, and the business grew from there. The name Swift River Roasters evolved organically. We knew we wanted something with a connection to Maine that conveyed freshness, movement and clarity and we invited a group of regular customers to dialogue about what that meant to them. Walt’s family has a camp near the Swift River, so, in the end, the name really just fit the bill.
Q: When you and your wife Linda started this business, what were your hopes? Did you ever imagine it would become the roaring success it is today?
A: We hoped that the business would sustain and enrich our family, personally as well as financially, and we wanted to do work we felt good about, explore our interests, and stay connected to our community. It certainly has done all that and more; aside from our own family, we have more than forty year-round employees, our customer base is growing, and our product selection continues to expand. We’re incredibly grateful for the support of our customers, for the hard work of our staff, and for our own capacity to remain active, creative, innovative and involved!
Ray Richardson is the host of the Ray Richardson Show on WLOB Radio. He has authored three books, his new book, Truth About Trump is on Pre-sale now, written a newspaper column for over a decade and is a contributor to Richardson Magazine.
Ray lives with his wife of 34 years, Dee Dee, in Westbrook Maine. They have four grown children (8 when you count the spouses), and blessed with one granddaughter.
