Wow. What a year 2025 is, and what a story it tells.
The world at-large is changing rapidly, and here in the US, it's turning inward in so many ways.
At World Spice, we're focusing on turning outward. As keepers of a vast library of spices, teas, and recipes, and as enthusiastic lovers of sharing a good meal and taking culinary adventures together, we think it's a good time to talk more about where we've come from and to lay out the mission our team is on.
Three Decades in the Making
World Spice was founded 30 years ago in a 1300-square-foot Seattle space that we still call home. Back then, it was a retail store and a warehouse where we'd receive large sacks and barrels of pure spices from around the world, somehow storing it all. So many flavors, such a small space — a culinary genie crammed inside a little lamp on Western Avenue.
Two years ago, almost to the day, our previous owner and boss retired, selling the company to us — her team. We're now an employee-owned venture we like to call The Spice Company That Cares. We raised wages to sustainable rates, improved our healthcare plan, maintained our vendor relationships, and started moving forward in a familiar but bigger direction.
Our Mission: Opening Doors to Global Cuisine
At World Spice, we believe every bite for every diet should be spectacular, achievable, affordable, judgment-free, filler-free, and rooted in culinary wisdom from all around the globe.
I'm proud to share this mission and how we plan to achieve it through empowerment and connection.
You know as well as we do the difference fresh, quality spices make. A quick whiff or taste lights up the senses! And what joy it brings to create something delightful for the people we care about.
We also know there are barriers to cooking and brewing at home. You might be short on time, too dang tired, or find certain dishes — especially new cuisines — intimidating. Your diet may have also changed.
This leads me to our first core team value.
Empowerment
To us, empowerment takes on many shapes, but it centers on giving you knowledge and support through:
- Fantastic recipes, from the easily-achievable to the daring
- Spice tips from our expert team — like this recent post on Creole Spice
- Coming Soon: Series — recipes & guides that build on each other, particularly to learn about cuisines from around the world
- Access to the best spices, teas, and tools we find scouring the world and the web
We're investing more and more into each of these categories, with the goal that every product has plenty of ways to get you cooking and brewing any time of day.
Connection
Our second core value is connection. We can all use more of that now, right?
We're building a community. It began in the store, where conversations help inspire & empower your next cooking adventure.
And now we're building an online community space, launching later this year, that we hope will bring that experience to you everywhere. Hundreds of you told us in our August survey that you want to read and share spice tips and recipes from each other, in addition to culinary experts. We're making that happen.
We'll soon have a digital space where we publish — and let you publish — recipes, tips, and discussions. It's a space where we'll host culinary experts, whether well-known or just damned great at cooking up a dish and a story. And where we can all ask no-judgment questions, get answers and support, and have fun.
World Spice will be the best place to try, learn, play, and perfect new flavor experiences from around the world.
Thank you!
We've come this far, thanks to you. There was truly a time when we weren't sure World Spice would survive, but with your support, we're beginning to thrive. We should get to profitability this year, and our vast library remains small batch and as fresh & flavorful as ever.
We know that every single product you purchase from us enters your homes, makes its way onto your tables, and becomes part of your stories. Thank you. It's truly an honor, and we are SO EXCITED about what's coming next.
Future Flavor Notes will dive into sustainability, our packaging and what's next, tariffs (or, maybe not! 😅), our remodeled & ever-evolving retail store, a tea rebrand, and more. Let me know what questions you have by sending me an email: porter@worldspice.com.
