Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY -- A local company is getting national attention for embracing the idea of comforting people. The company had a very personal start. That personalization seems to be fueling its success.
In 2007, Marti Wymer received the devastating news that her mom had lung cancer. The hardest part for Marti was that she was living thousands of miles away.
"I wanted to do something to comfort her and show her how much I care," Marti said. "Flowers, fruit, nothing felt appropriate. So I thought, what do you send someone that's sick? Chicken soup."
That's what Marti's mother cooked to comfort her. Now it was Marti's turn.
"Tragically I lost her six weeks later. But the idea for Spoonful of Comfort was born," she said.
The company started in 2009 with friends and family as the first customers. Two years later, business is booming.
"Just in this first quarter we have doubled all of last year's business," Marti said.
Marti says people connect with the personal touch. Each jar of soup is hand-poured, every bow hand-tied, and accompanying each box is a heartfelt, hand-written note relating to that person's particular situation.
"It's kind of emotional. The things that you're writing on there get so touching and you get so attached when you see what's going on," Marti said.
Scott Gustafson, president and chairman of Spoonful of Comfort said, "More than anything, when people receive the package it's something they want to send to somebody else."
"It's more than just soup that we're sending."
Marti says her mother received a lot of soup in the final weeks of her life, but she never had the opportunity to try Marti's.
"That's the hardest part, that they're not here to see it and see how it goes," Marti said.
In honor of Marti's mother, a portion of every order to Spoonful of Comfort is donated to cancer research.
