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accolades by delivering goods that live up to its name. Last spring, the company was named the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Small Business Manufacturer of the Year for New Hampshire. In addition to honoring the company for its ingenuity and rapid growth, the SBA’s announcement on the award also credited Velasquez’s resourcefulness in seeking “SBA-backed funding provided
by Mascoma Bank, support from the Monadnock Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) [and] the Community Development Finance Authority (CDFA) funds, and the backing of local investors” to help make his goals a reality. In addition to consistently seeking financial assistance when needed, Velasquez also benefited from admirable economic foresight. In 2019, long before COVID-19 and today’s concerns over tariffs, he negotiated locked-in rates from his cashew suppliers in Vietnam and South Africa. Revolution Through Ravioli Based on its astronomical sales in 2024, it’s no surprise that Clean Simple Foods has major plans for the rest of this year and beyond. Its dairy-free ravioli line is set to expand significantly, and the company intends to increase employment opportunities in New England. By focusing on finding solutions to his physical and financial needs, Velasquez began an animal-friendly entrepreneurial adventure that shows no signs of slowing down. If there’s one critical lesson from his meteoric rise in the retail food world, it’s this: Never count out the person living on your couch.
HAVE A Laugh
Frontier Ingenuity at Its Finest HOW 1800S PIONEERS TURNED TREE STUMPS INTO COZY HOMES
A cozy home carved into a towering tree stump might sound like something straight out of a fairytale, but in the rugged 1800s, it was a reality for America’s earliest settlers on the West Coast. Back then, the forests were filled with trees so massive their trunks could measure 20 feet across or more. Once felled, these stumps were too big, stubborn, and
abundant to remove easily. So, the pioneers did what pioneers do best: They got scrappy. They turned the stumps into homes, post offices, barns, and even dance floors! One of the most legendary stump homes was the Lennstrom Stump House in Edgecomb, Washington. Crafted from a cedar stump 22 feet wide, it sheltered three adults and three children! In a time when luxury was a warm fire and a sturdy roof (or stump) over your head, these quirky homes captured the best of pioneer spirit: grit, resourcefulness, and a little bit of magic.
jwyatt@harrisonlawgroup.com | HarrisonLawGroup.com | 3
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