n FOOD
ell says. “I’m like, ‘Well, I already kind of know what I’m do-
ing with my life.’ And that’s nice to know at such a young
age.”
Hiring more help and assigning tasks once handled by
his father has freed Josh to think more about business de-
velopment and creative ways to grow the brand. It was his
idea to start hosting open houses in the Woodland ware-
house, which launched the year of his return. The first year,
he estimates about 200 people showed up over two days to
sample the products. Since then, he’s added live music and
raff le prizes, and the events have grown fourfold.
Business was doing well, with annual revenue growing
from $400,000 in 2010 to more than $2 million. The bulk
of the business is now restaurant distribution. Mulvaney’s
B&L is just one on a list that includes Piatti and Bella Bru
Cafe, as well as big hitters like the Golden 1 Center and
the Sacramento Convention Center. The products are also
available in all Raley’s, Bel Air and Nugget stores, Whole
Foods in Northern California and other independent gro-
cers across the country.
By 2016, Josh was running the business and hoping to
channel the energy of the popular open houses toward ex-
pansion. Z Specialty was outgrowing its Woodland foot-
print, and Josh envisioned relocating the warehouse some-
where that would better facilitate tastings, events and
community interaction. It was time to make a big move.
He started looking for land.
LASTING LEGACY
Josh was at the base of the Sawtooth mountains during a road
trip to Idaho with his wife for the total solar eclipse in August
2017 when he got the call. Ishai had been diagnosed with a
glioblastoma brain tumor. He would need a biopsy immedi-
ately, and it wasn’t certain he’d survive even that. “There is
a part of me that processed his entire passing in that day,”
Josh says.
Ishai survived the biopsy, but his tumor was inoperable.
He died at home on June 17, 2018, at 71 — one month after
plans to expand the business he started with 180 pounds of
yellow star thistle honey, solidified with the purchase of a
parcel of land off Interstate 5 in Woodland.
The property, just under 3 acres, will allow the company
to double its warehouse space to 20,000 square feet and bring
its cold storage in-house. The old-guard fans and heaters at
its current warming room will be replaced with heated floor
tiles that warm honey from below — meaning faster heating
at lower temperatures for an even higher-quality product. It
will include a tasting room, event space, fruit orchard and
COWORKING
WORKSHOPS
ACCELERATOR
918 5th St, 1st Flr, Sacramento CA 95814
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@cowocampus
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