Best Of Vermont Offers Smorgasbord Of Local Quality Products

RUTLAND, Vt. - Launched in September of 2010 by Bonnie Kelsey Quinn, Best of Vermont is an e-commerce web site dedicated to offering the best specialty foods from the Green Mountain State. A carefully selected collection of the highest quality, handcrafted Vermont-made products there is to offer.

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Photos courtesy of Best Of Vermont

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In a recent interview, Kelsey Quinn explained how the Best of Vermont concept came about. "After completing a fundraising campaign with Rutland Regional Fieldhouse in 2006, I felt the need to do something else as important for the community and the state. I wanted to support local business, as well as utilizing my passion for food and cooking."

Bonnie researched all the best Vermont-made products she could find, bundled them into different categories such as breakfast, grilling, sauces and cheeses, and offer the pruducts in custom gift cubes. "I started Best of Vermont as an online retail store and used a distributor for most of the products, while going direct with others. But I found it difficult to get everything I needed in a timely manner... and service was terrible."

Customers were paying Best of Vermont in advance for their products, but Bonnie needed to have the products in-house as to provide better service for her customers. "I knew I could do a better job as a distributor," Bonnie added. "We support Vermont producers, service retailers and offer an on-line ordering site. When I started, the economy was pretty bad, but I knew locally made products were the fastest growing retail segment at the time."

Best of Vermont offers 325 different Vermont-made products, some exclusively, produced by some 55 companies. Just a few product categories include cheese and cured meats, dry mixes, seasonings and spices, granola, oat and nut products, health and beauty aids, honey and maple products, mustards and hot sauces, snacks, candy and dessert products and organic and even gluten-free products.

"Everything we offer is absolutely made in Vermont," Kelsey Quinn proclaimed. "After qualifying as a Certified Vermont Made Product, we further certify that a product meets Best of Vermont’s high standards for taste, product consistency, design, function and overall quality, through our own exclusive rating system."

Products are considered Certified Vermont Made if they have at least 85 percent of the value of the final product added in Vermont, and that the product was last substantially transformed in Vermont.

"Without the best producers I would not have a business," Bonnie concluded. "I respect our producer-partners for their high quality products, and we offer the best line of products made in Vermont. Retailers know when they come to us, they will get the best products and service because we qualify our products and have what they need and when they need them.

"We offer an on-line wholesale ordering system that no other distributor offers. We have a knowledgeable sales and customer service team that will offer the best service available in the industry. We guarantee our products and want our customers to behappy with our service.

"Best of Vermont wants everyone to enjoy their shopping experience online, as much as they would enjoy an actual visit to Vermont!" To learn more about Best of Vermont and the many Vermont-made products they offer, visit the web site at www.bestofvermont.com or call toll free, 888-933-4488.