OEN NewsOregonAF 2021 Investment Announced
FACE ROCK CREAMERY WINS OREGON ANGEL FOOD INVESTMENT
Bandon, Oregon company earns $220,000 investment from Oregon Angel Food investors.
Portland, OR: Bandon-based Face Rock Creamery earned the Oregon Angel Food 2021 investment of approximately $220,000, announced at the OregonAF Grand Finale & Marketplace on Friday, September 17th, 2021.
Face Rock Creamery is an award winning specialty cheese producer based in Bandon, Oregon that sources its milk from the greater Southern Oregon region. Already well on its way to becoming a home-grown success story, Face Rock Creamery sells cheese nationally via Costco, Kroger, Safeway, and Whole Foods. Founder Gregory Drobot is planning to use the investment to further grow sales and expand their facilities in Bandon, bringing more jobs to the region.
“I am incredibly honored and humbled that Face Rock Creamery was chosen as the winner of the 2021 Oregon Angel food competition. This investment will be crucial in Face Rock’s growth and evolution on its path to become the big cheese! Being located in Bandon Oregon, a town of just over 3,000 folks, many times we feel like we’re on an island and outside of the economic buzz of the larger cities in Oregon. I am very proud that this money will be invested in a rural business, to fund growth through more local hires, and increased manufacturing. On behalf of all of Face Rock’s employees, we want to say thank you to OEN and the Oregon Angel Food investors.”
As Stew Yaguda, volunteer investment director for Oregon Angel Food explains, a key objective of OregonAF is to help cultivate a community of angel investors who understand the food and beverage sector, which is quite different from technology investing. This year nearly 30 individuals pooled funds into the OregonAF investment, and were supported with an additional $50,000 from the Oregon Growth Fund.
After interviewing the founder teams, tasting the products, mystery shopping, studying the financials and deliberating together throughout the summer, the investors voted on which of the four finalist companies to invest. Their decision was announced at the end of the OregonAF Grand Finale & Marketplace last Friday.
OEN Executive Director Amanda Oborne is excited about the OregonAF investors’ choice of Face Rock Creamery. “I’m glad to see a rural entrepreneur from Oregon earn this investment. The cheese is really delicious, and I hope the recognition helps power Face Rock as a driver of economic growth on the southern Oregon coast.”
Oregon Entrepreneurs Network (OEN) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to helping entrepreneurs start up and scale up. The organization hosts two main entrepreneur education and angel investment programs: Angel Oregon Tech (AOTech) and Oregon Angel Food (OregonAF), as well as the annual OEN Entrepreneurship Awards. Learn more at www.oen.org.
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