For those of us who have been around Cherry Republic awhile, it’s hard to believe that at the start of the 2010s we only had two retail stores! Our flagship campus in Glen Arbor grew little by little since Bob started the company in 1989 out of the trunk of his car, and then our second location was added in 2007 in downtown Traverse City. As we round the corner into 2020, we are bursting with pride when we consider our six thriving stores scattered throughout out beautiful state of Michigan.
Over the next few weeks we’ll reflect on all the ways Cherry Republic has grown over the past 10 years — from product offerings to staff to our growing support of the environment.
NEW PRODUCT RELEASES
As we look fondly back at all that transpired over the past decade in the Republic, we are a bit amazed by the number of new products that we introduced since 2010. We added three new inventive Salsas, two Barbecue Sauces and a Cherry BBQ Spice Rub, several seasonal Jams and Preserves, and new Cherry Nut Mixes that our Citizens describe as addictive! Then there was our wildly successful releases of our summer Sunset Blush and (most recently) Cherry Adore wines. And perhaps one of the most signficant milestones was the opening of our Cherry Public House and the beginning of our Cherry Republic Brewing Company craft beers. Raise a glass to past and future cherry endeavors!
Salsas: Peach Cherry Salsa, Cherry Salsa Verde, Cherries on Fire Salsa
BBQ Sauces: Cherryaki Sauce, Ghost Pepper Sauce, Cherry BBQ Spice Rub
Savories: Smoky Cherry BBQ Salad Dressing, Cherry Slow Cooker Sauce, Cherry Artisan Mustard, Cherry Horseradish Sauce, Original Cherry Summer Sausage and Smoky Habanero Summer Sausage
Chocolates: Exceptionally Dark Chocolate Covered Cherries, Amaretto Chocolate Covered Cherries, One Big Cluster
Nut Mixes: Statesman’s Nut Mix, Public House Snack Mix, Resistance Mix
Seasonal Jams: Cherry Apricot Jam, Cherry Fig Jam, Cherry Mimosa Conserve, Pineapple Upside Down Jam, Nouveau Montmorency Jam and Balaton Nouveau Preserves
Wine: Seasonal Sunset Blush Wine and Cherry Ice Wine; Great Hall Noir, Cherry Adore Wine
Craft Beer: Located within the Cherry Public House, Cherry Republic Brewing Co.’s 12 taps feature a variety of ales, lagers, and ciders along with four cherry beers.
RETAIL EXPANSION
Who would have thought in 1989 when Bob was selling t-shirts out of the back of his car that 28 years later Cherry Republic would be the leading cherry retailer in Michigan? Today we have six beautiful stores sprinkled throughout the state, and each location has its own personality.
2010 — The idyllic lakefront resort town of Charlevoix was the perfect match for Cherry Republic’s next retail store following the opening of the Traverse City story in 2007.
2011 — Bob decided it was time for the Republic to expand its retail presence beyond Northern Michigan, so he chose the hip college town of Ann Arbor for his next store.
2015 — Cherry Republic opened its fifth store in the heart of Michigan’s “Little Bavaria” in the quaint village of Frankenmuth.
2017 — West Michigan’s beautiful downtown Holland was the choice for Cherry Republic’s most recent “downstate” location.
