Twisted Root Market: Community. Sustainability. Health.
Opening in 2018 as a specialty marketplace for difficult-to-find food and goods, Twisted Root Market owner and founder, Sierra Roland, centered the store on her experience as a health coach and nutritionist. With the goal of providing Wrangell with exceptional variety, quality, and service, Twisted Root Market has lived up to its motto: Community. Sustainability. Health.
This commitment led Twisted Root Market to offer wholesale ordering to the community to help ease the financial stress from the first round of lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic. When asked what the most fulfilling aspect of being a small business owner is in Wrangell, she shared it is “the connections we get to make in our community. It is a blessing to get to know so many of our customers on a personal level and gratifying to help meet their unique needs in our unique town.”
This proved to be more valuable than ever this past year. With assistance from Wrangell Public Schools, Twisted Root Market was able to provide food boxes of fresh produce and healthy options to families in need. Additionally, they created donation accounts for local families experiencing hardship. Despite the challenges presented in the last year, Twisted Root Market is operating similarly as it did at inception, with the addition of online shopping, contactless pick-up, and local delivery to meet the needs of the community.
To ensure the Twisted Root Market was on track to grow, Roland worked with Rural Program Director, Jennifer Adams with the Alaska Small Business Development Center (Alaska SBDC) to project its financial forecast and identify growth opportunities, explore what product made the most sense to be included on the store shelves. From the effort and dedication put in over the last two years, Roland is proud to be able to employ three exceptional women and is focused on moving the Twisted Root Market into a larger location to expand its services and selections this spring.
What is next? Roland would like to work towards expanding Twisted Root Market into other communities, increase outreach by providing assistance for families in need, and working with local food banks to create healthy cooking programs. From there? Potentially partnering with local seafood processors to expand local options for her community even further.
Connect with Twisted Root Market at 310 Front Street, Wrangell Alaska 99929, and online at twistedrootmarket.com, Instagram, and Facebook.
