Corridor Sausage launches Grindhouse food truck

Corridor Sausage Co has gone mobile, launching a food truck called The Grindhouse in Eastern Market last weekend.

The new side venture is one of a handful of milestones the slow-food startup is achieving this spring. Corridor Sausage Co has doubled its production of its artisan sausages in the last six months and received USDA approval to begin selling them in large quantities in more markets. It is also making plans to expand its offerings to include more foods.

Making all of this possible is the Corridor Sausage Co's new home in Eastern Market. The 4-year-old company moved into its first permanent home late last year, allowing it to buy bigger equipment so it can ramp up production. Since then it has doubled its revenue and hired four people to its staff of seven by expanding the firm's client list, landing some big accounts like The Henry Ford and Greenfield Village.

"It has opened up a lot of doors for us," says Will Branch, co-owner of Corridor Sausage Co. "We have gone from seven hours a week in a rented kitchen to 40-50 hours a week in our own space."

That new production capability also allowed the firm to outfit its own food truck. Branch and his co-founder, Zachary Klein, spun off the food truck with Gjon Camaj, who owns a tech firm called Image Space in Ann Arbor. The Grindhouse will sell Corridor Sausage Co's sausages along with its own home-made ingredients, such as mustard. Other ingredients, like kraut, will be sourced from The Brinery in Ann Arbor.

Branch and Klein are making plans to expand Corridor Sausage Co's product portfolio. The partners are experimenting with mustard recipes and making salumi and charcuterie and other aged meats.

"We have been thinking about that for a few years now," Branch says.

Corridor Sausage Co's product could also start to become ubiquitous in the U.S. The firm recently received USDA approval for its sausages, a long and arduous approval process. That approval will allow Corridor Sausage Co to wholesale its sausages and market them in other states, which Branch expects will set the stage for an even bigger growth spurt for the firm.

Source: Will Branch, co-owner of Corridor Sausage Co
Writer: Jon Zemke

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