Robbies owners and Gore residents Josie and Gus Robinson will mark their 10th year in business next year and appeared at Southland Made Product showcase in Invercargill late last month.
The Robinsons’ business started in their home kitchen with Mrs Robinson’s grandmother’s recipe for red and green tomato relish.
"So it’s celebrating my heritage in a jar, with what I grew up with."
And "Robbie" was Mr Robinson’s grandfather’s call sign while he was a pilot in World War 2.
"So it’s a tribute to our grandparents."
After the pickles came Nana’s Worcestershire sauce.
"Then bread and butter pickles — and then it’s a bit of a blur."
The couple are staunch Southland supporters. When their own garden could not provide their ingredients, where possible, they sourced ingredients from local growers to keep their products authentically Southland-made.
"We’re just trying to align with families, with values and hardworking [people] ... so we try and help do that first," Mrs Robinson said.
Heirloom and spray-free tomatoes and cucumbers come from Invercargill’s Koha Kai.
"So then my relish is just like my Nana made because of those tomatoes.
"So there’s little nuggets of Southland growers all through this."
What started off as a hobby where goodies were given to friends, soon challenged Mrs Robinson to give up her fulltime job and start the business.
"I thought, I’d quit the job and give it a decent crack. And here we are.
"I never would have imagined we’d ever have done what we’ve done."
The market world delivered a harsh life-lesson, but perseverance steered her towards establishing her niche of producing something with a point of difference.
Their product was now sold from Waiheke Island to Bluff.
The couple were constantly approached by "big players" in the market.
"But I’ve said no.
"They won’t ever do this the way I do it and the recipes are ones I’ve created and my grandmother’s."
She is still working from her registered home kitchen and new product lines are constantly being trialled.
"The creative freedom I have, I absolutely love.
"... My thinking is out of the box, which means I can pivot when I need to ... You get ideas that aren’t maybe mainstream but are still special."
