Walk into Nola’s Pantry and you immediately feel like you are getting a warm hug. Lovingly named after owner Bill Rumsey’s mother, this specialty food shop and café in Rogers offers bulk spices, rubs and hot sauces, jams, coffee and tea, plus gifts and pantry accessories.
The café features a menu of eclectic and original recipes made of unique ingredient combinations. They serve salads, sandwiches, soup, snacks, and breakfast smoothies, along with beer, wine, cider, and non-alcoholic drinks made with specialty syrups from Pink House Alchemy.
Owners Bill and Alicen Rumsey dreamed of building a business on Bill’s artful cooking. When he created wonderful meals, they joked between themselves, “This will go on the menu someday!”
The couple wanted to share their cuisine with Northwest Arkansas, bring unique foods to the area, and support small-batch suppliers.
“We initially approached the Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center at the University of Arkansas because we decided to open the business and needed financing,” said Alicen.
They began meeting with consultant Lori Lieblong, and the center assisted the Rumseys with financial projections.
“This forced us to really analyze and determine what we needed to do to make it happen,” she said.
Lieblong continued working with the Rumseys to construct their business plan, develop a financial workbook, and provide insightful market research.
“The ASBTDC offered strategic guidance that helped us make many startup decisions along the way,” Alicen noted. “We worked on a brand strategy and look forward to building our marketing strategy with Lori’s advice,” she added.
The couple also took advantage of the free training offered by the center. Attending a webinar, they learned to use a free online design tool, Canva, to construct and design menus.
“With all the moving parts relative to startups, we believe the struggle to make the right decisions, at the right time, would have been a real trial without the guidance of Lori and the ASBTDC,” says Alicen.
Since opening Nola’s Pantry in March 2022, the Rumseys have been busier than they could have imagined.
“The love we have had from the community of Rogers is incredible and there are so many cheerleaders who want you to succeed,” observes Alicen. “We came to downtown Rogers because of the community.”
Visit nolaspantry.com to learn more.