Stephen McConkey and Richard Hines, co-founders
We’re loco for good sauces and spreads. We like to dip crackers and chips, or rev up sandwiches with uncommon spreads. We love to turn an ordinary meal into a fiesta with a peppery chimichurri.
Richard Hines and Stephen McConkey started Sound Bites Sauce & Spread Co. in Tacoma in June 2008. At first, we sold exclusively at farmers markets–some 15 in all. Buyers from stores in the Puget Sound would visit our display at farmers markets, taste our products, and then encourage us to sell our products wholesale.
We started this company because we knew that our farmers in Washington state raise over 300 crops commercially. But try finding a hummus at a local grocery store that tells you where the beans came from. Try finding any fresh chimichurri at all!
Supporting Washington-grown products is the first step we all can take to ensure that our farms keep growing for generations to come. The challenges we face in the 21st Century — from climate change to oil depletion to the loss of farmland— can be addressed by changes to our diet. This is a delicious revolution, and we invite you to be part of it. Enjoy your Sound Bites!