Now, that’s what I’ve always thought One Mighty Mill should look like. Brick, strong, smoke stack – in my crazy head, that building symbolizes the revitalization of local food systems and communities. It’s the kind of place where we should be milling flour and making our products.
So, I was fired up when I received that picture on a text from a real estate developer with whom I had just had a conference call. It felt like he had just served up some kind of divine intervention. It’s funny – when I scheduled the call, I wasn’t sure why I was doing it. But, that’s the way my life has been since I left my company in October. I’ve been networking with everyone I’ve been introduced to or who wants to meet. The crazy thing is that most of those random meetings end up leading to valuable ideas or connections.
Anyway, it felt like some kind of spiritual awakening when I looked at my phone and saw that abandoned, old paper mill in Boston’s Hyde Park neighborhood. But, my excitement faded pretty quickly. Once I visited in person and met the developer, I understood that the building (and probably most like it) can’t be One Mighty Mill. We want to be milling and baking in 4-5 months. A building like the one in the photo is too raw, too complicated, and too big of a project to fit our timeline. Regardless, the image of that old mill is inspiring and important. Even if One Mighty Mill’s physical space can’t look exactly like that, the photo provides a visual for the feeling our location should evoke.
The building also pushed me to make our timeline a real priority and to use it as criteria for selecting location.
When I started, I instinctively wanted to build One Mighty Mill in Boston. It’s where I live, where we started our last company, and where my network is strongest. And on a deeper, personal level, I just really wanted to build something special that made a difference in my own community. Also, and I know I’m getting way ahead of myself here, I always thought that Boston – over starting it in other places in New England – provided the strongest platform for generating momentum. I thought Boston would be the biggest stage for amplifying our story and accelerating our growth.
But, I was naïve. I thought that I could just find an underserved area and build a business. Then, positive impact and goodness would emanate. That’s not how it works. After spending time in those communities and meeting with organizations and city officials, I learned it’s way more complex. While Boston has enjoyed unprecedented prosperity over the last decade, the success hasn’t been distributed everywhere. The result is that gentrification now threatens people who haven’t benefitted from the city’s growth and who grew up, live and raised families in places that used to be affordable. It’s complicated and it’s not what I expected when I started thinking about locations. Since we want One Mighty Mill to be a catalyst for revitalization, I’m concerned that Boston might be the right place but at the wrong time.
Ironically, as I wrestled with this issue, I had what I thought at the time was a “random” meeting. It turned out to be totally enlightening. My meeting was with a friend-of-a-friend named Jason. Jason was opening an ice cream shop and we were connected on the idea that my restaurant experience may be helpful.
Jason had just finished working in real estate development for Congressman Seth Moulton in the 6th district (the group of towns just north of Boston). Most of the work he led over the last 3 years was focused on revitalizing Lynn, a city 10 miles north of Boston. After explaining One Mighty Mill to him, Jason urged me to visit Lynn with him. His passion and excitement told me that there was both a serious need in the community and opportunity for a business to have meaningful impact. Jason made it clear — One Mighty Mill could make a very real difference in Lynn and could help revitalize the city. So, I eagerly accepted his offer for a personal tour of Lynn and meetings with the city officials and the Congressman’s team.
My heart is still with Boston. But, I like everything I know about Lynn so far.
I got next! 