Meet Maria Kalomenidou | Founder & CEO Zelos Greek Artisan

We had the good fortune of connecting with Maria Kalomenidou and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Maria, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Zelos was born from my zēlos (zeal) to showcase the flavors and drive that are modern Greece. It all started in 2017, when I began thinking about doing something different in my 50s, moving on from my visual design work and into something that would bring me closer to Greece, where I was born & raised. I had a great love of food & cooking and had just finished authoring a book for Cincinnati’s Contemporary Art Center (CAC) called Cuisine-Art-Cocktails. It made me realize that there is a lot of creative thinking in food, and I started paying more attention to new producers, flavors, packaging, especially when I’d go back to Greece. At the same time, I could never seem to find the same high-quality Greek products here in the States, where people often get a cliched view of Greek food. I wanted to change all that, offering the clean, natural flavors that I saw thriving in contemporary Greek cuisine. I also wanted to help the amazing entrepreneurs I had been meeting, truly authentic Greek Artisans. Some were new entrepreneurs, like me, others were carrying on family businesses into a challenging third generation. I knew that together we could take Greek cuisine in the States to a new level, beyond the cliches, and at the same time help them grow and prosper as Artisans. It’s been a rewarding way of giving back to Greece.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
It isn’t a coincidence that I started my business as Greece was coming out of a nearly decade-long economic crisis. I wanted to support those entrepreneurs that had been able to survive that challenging economic, political & social environment and help them grow by bringing them to a larger market, like the US. I made a conscious choice to start with six carefully selected Artisans, people I knew shared my values, my zelos, and reflected it in their work, as well as in their own relationships with suppliers and in their local community. But this wasn’t about creating my own brand, I wanted to help them tell their own compelling stories, build their own brands, and help them in a meaningful, long-term way to gain exposure to the huge US market. So we began collaborating on everything from regulatory, design, branding, marketing & commercial strategies.

I’m also convinced that small-batch artisanal food is a healthier and tastier alternative to industrially-processed foods, which is why I only choose organic or all-natural products that are produced locally in Greece. Especially after the pandemic, people are looking for healthy, non-processed food and I’m glad we can give it to them. All the feedback we receive, whether from large corporate customers giving business gifts or individuals buying for themselves or for a special friend, confirms that they appreciate our high-quality products, the freshness and intensity of the healthy flavors, and the stories of the intrepid Artisans behind them.

There are two big risks I took with Zelos. This first was that our Artisans and their products were completely unknown in the States – they had no brand equity or presence in the market, and we needed to convince people to try them. The second risk was the responsibility I took towards those Artisans, for I promised to help them get established in the US market but I didn’t know if we’d pull it off. We were a start-up with no infrastructure, we were not part of a big distribution network (and still intentionally aren’t), we needed to develop convincing concepts & ideas to get Americans to try unknown products, some of which, like sea fennel, they had probably never heard of!

One risk that I did not take was to get into the start-up funding roller coaster. I had decided early on to take a controlled, slow burn approach, rather than spending money I didn’t have to advertise and generate sales that could never be profitable. Food already has a very small profit margin and I wanted to act responsibly towards our suppliers and ourselves. It was a difficult but conscious choice, but seeing other start ups fail in the post-pandemic fall-out tells me that it was the hard but right road to take.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’ve never been to Colorado but really hope I can visit soon. I do write a lot in our Zelos blog about my favorite places to visit in Greece, the hidden gems that are off the beaten track of the usual touristed areas.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I am so glad you are offering this opportunity. Truth be told, success never comes in singles, it is usually the coordinated work and effort of many, and that has been my case, too. A shoutout to my team of ladies who has been there for me throughout my Zelos adventure. To Pauline Manos, who has been my partner-in-crime since the beginning. Not only is she a great friend, she is also fighting all the battles with me and helps me keep my head clear and my feet on the ground. Alicia Martin, who has been tirelessly taking care of on-the-ground operations, packing beautiful packages and gifts for our clients, and all with a smile. Eleftheria Karakatsina, who has been taking more and more responsibility every day and showing amazing zeal, energy & enthusiasm for Zelos. And last but not least, a huge shoutout to my husband Yannis, who has been supportive and a beam of hope and light, even in the darkest of days. To all of them, a big thank you!

Website: https://zelosgreekartisan.com

Instagram: @zelosgreekartisan.com

Linkedin: @zelosgreekartisan

Facebook: @zelosgreekartisan