The Planetarian Food Co is a one stop shop for all your vegan, vegetarian, gluten free and organic products and it opened its doors on Targo Street earlier this week.
Owners Marcus and Sharon Hiesler are a couple of passionate foodies, with health always on their minds, who want to fill the gap for vegan options in the Bundaberg Region.
Their desire to eat healthy organic food helped Marcus step away from his phlebotomy career and venture into the niche retail business, and he hopes to share a hunger for health locally.
As a vegetarian Marcus said he found it difficult to cater for the lifestyle by relying on larger grocery stores in the region.
It was a trip to Byron Bay which inspired the couple to change direction in life and open the specialty grocery store.
“On a visit to Byron Bay we saw vegan options on virtually every corner and experienced so many amazing products that we knew we had to be the change we want to see,” Marcus said.
“We came across the Bay Grocer, which is this amazing shop filled with just about everything you need.
“So, we came home to Bundaberg and set plans in motion for The Planetarian Food Co. to become a reality.”
Variety of products at The Planetarian Food Co
Marcus said The Planetarian Food Co sources the very best vegan, vegetarian, gluten free, and organic products from both large companies and artisan producers from across Australia, and includes items such as pizza bases, vegan gravy mix, vegan egg replacement and gluten-free bread mix.
“We have been experimenting at the moment, trying new products and stocking a variety of goods from North Queensland, Byron Bay and Victoria,” he said.
“The more we look the more we find. Like the Nutty Bay Cashew Cream spread, it’s made in Byron and is really delicious, so we had to make sure we stocked it.”
The first week of business has given Marcus a clear idea of the gap that was in the local market for vegan, vegetarian, gluten free, and organic products, and he said their goal was to eventually expand and model Byron Bay’s Bay Grocer store.
“It’s our long-term goal for us to both go fulltime here, expand the business and cater for food needs in Bundaberg,” he said.
The Planetarian Food Co is located 1/56 Targo Street, next to Kayla’s Expertease, or for more information click here.
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