SKORDO

What SKORDO does

SKORDO is a privately held, founder-owned specialty spice and seasoning company founded in 2016 and headquartered in Portsmouth, NH, with a second retail location in Portland, ME. The company produces a curated catalog of 245+ products centered on hand-blended, small-batch proprietary spice blends and rubs (76 SKUs), recipe kits (27 SKUs at $8), artisan salts and peppers (40 SKUs), individual spices and herbs, chile flakes and powders, and adjacent pantry and lifestyle items including honeys, oils, vinegars, hot sauces, kitchen accessories, and cookbooks. SKORDO differentiates on freshness (no additives or anti-caking agents, late-stage grinding), breadth of international flavor profiles, and a portfolio of named chef collaborations (Gesine Bullock-Prado, Barton Seaver's Wine Pairing Rubs, Central Provisions, The Getty Bagel, Evo Kitchen + Bar's Shawarma Blend) that serve as both product lines and brand credibility signals.

The business operates an omnichannel go-to-market centered on direct-to-consumer e-commerce at skordo.com, supplemented by two company-owned brick-and-mortar stores, free Click & Collect in NH and ME, free shipping on orders over $75, and a wholesale/stockists program serving restaurants and independent retailers. Pricing spans $5-$19 for individual spices and rubs, $29-$70 for curated gift sets, and $10+ gift cards, with promotional mechanics such as 'Buy 4 Recipe Kits, Get 1 Free.' Marketing is content-driven through the SKORDO Kitchen Blog, The Recipe Box recipe resource, an Instagram presence (@shopskordo), email newsletter, and customer reviews, with the SKORDO Insider loyalty program anchoring community engagement. The company is led by co-owners and co-founders Cari Karonis, Anne Karonis, and John Karonis, with no disclosed venture funding, parent company, or M&A activity.

Name

SKORDO

Legal name

SKORDO

Website

https://skordo.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SKORDO is a founder-owned specialty spice company founded in 2016 that hand-blends and sells proprietary spice blends, rubs, salts, recipe kits, and curated gift sets direct-to-consumer via its website, two New England retail stores, and a wholesale program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Spices and Seasonings

NAICS

Other Specialty Food Retailers (44529), All Other Specialty Food Retailers (445298)

SIC

Food And Kindred Products (2000)

akta.pro primary industry

Ingredients, Spices & Culinary Supplies Distribution (CRAOABAK)

Keywords

• Specialty spices
• Artisanal spice blends
• Recipe meal kits
• Culinary gift sets
• Kitchen accessories

Headquarters

HQ city

Portsmouth

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Spice & Seasoning Products: SKORDO generates revenue through the sale of proprietary spice blends, rubs, individual spices, herbs, salts, and peppers. Products are sold directly through their e-commerce website and physical retail locations. Individual items range from $5-$19, with curated spice sets priced between $29-$70.
2. Recipe Kits: Pre-packaged recipe kits containing curated spice blends and instructions for specific dishes. Most recipe kits are priced at $8.00. The company offers a 'Buy 4 Kits, Get 1 Free' promotion.
3. Gift Cards: Both e-gift cards and physical gift cards available starting at $10.00, providing flexible gifting options for customers.
4. Curated Spice Sets: Pre-configured themed spice collections (e.g., Wine Pairing Rubs Gift Set, Global Grillin' Spice Set) that bundle complementary products at a premium price point.
5. Pantry & Kitchen Accessories: Sale of complementary products including olive oils, vinegars, honeys, hot sauces, kitchen tools, linens, ceramics, and cookbooks.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

SKORDO is a specialty spice and seasoning company that hand-blends, packages, and sells artisanal spice blends, rubs, salts, peppers, individual spices and herbs, chile flakes and powders, recipe kits, curated themed gift sets, complementary pantry goods, kitchen accessories, cookbooks, and gift cards. The business operates primarily as a direct-to-consumer brand via its own e-commerce site (skordo.com) and two physical retail stores in Portsmouth, NH and Portland, ME, with a secondary wholesale/stockists program for restaurants and retailers.

Product overview

SKORDO is a Maine-based specialty spice and seasoning company offering a curated portfolio of culinary products centered around small-batch, hand-blended spices. The core offering consists of proprietary spice blends and rubs (76 products), signature sea salts and peppers (40 products), individual spices and herbs (65 products), and chile flakes and powders. The product line extends to recipe kits (27 products) providing pre-portioned ingredients with instructions for home cooking, curated gift sets themed by cuisine or occasion, pantry specialty items including honeys and oils, and kitchen accessories. Key differentiators include chef collaborations (Gesine Bullock-Prado, Barton Seaver, The Getty Bagel, Central Provisions restaurant) and a focus on premium, additive-free seasonings. SKORDO operates brick-and-mortar locations in Portsmouth, NH and Portland, ME, with e-commerce as the primary sales channel.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Gesine Bullock-Prado Collection: A collaboration with Gesine Bullock-Prado featuring blends inspired by her Vermont kitchen, baking passion, and warm approach to cooking. Includes German Cookie Spice (Lebkuchen) and Butter Chicken Recipe Kit.
• The Central Provisions Collection
• Barton Seaver's Wine Pairing Rubs
• The Getty Bagel 'Your Everything' Blend
• Evo's Shawarma Spice Blend

Products and services

• Spice Blends & Rubs Proprietary, hand-blended, small-batch spice blends and rubs for home cooks, featuring global flavor profiles, additive-free formulations, and named chef-collaboration lines. Sold by unit to individual consumers via skordo.com and two retail locations.
• Recipe Kits Pre-packaged recipe kits containing curated spice blends and instructions for specific dishes, providing a simplified cooking solution for home cooks. 27 SKUs priced at $8.00 each.
• Curated Spice Sets / Gift Sets Themed, pre-bundled gift sets of SKORDO spice blends and rubs oriented around cuisines (e.g., Mediterranean Mezze), occasions (e.g., Global Grillin'), or regional themes (e.g., Taste of Maine, Cook New England). Priced $29-$70 for gifting and self-use.
• Individual Spices & Herbs Stand-alone spices and herbs sold individually for home cooking and as building blocks for SKORDO's blends. Sourced globally with freshness-focused handling.
• Salts & Peppers Artisan salt and pepper products, including plain and flavored varieties, for finishing and seasoning. Includes premium offerings such as Black Truffle Sea Salt. 40 SKUs across the category.
• Chile Flakes & Powders Whole, flaked, and ground dried chile products covering global heat-and-flavor profiles for home cooks.
• Pantry Goods Complementary specialty pantry items — honeys, oils, vinegars, hot sauces, extracts, dried mushrooms, mustards, and syrups — bundled with the core spice assortment for gifting and everyday cooking.
• Kitchen Accessories Non-food kitchen items including bottles, linens, candles, grind and measure tools, utensils, glassware, bar tools, and servingware, complementing the spice lineup for gifting and self-use.
• Cookbooks A curated selection of cookbooks resold through skordo.com to support recipe inspiration for SKORDO's spice lines.
• Gift Cards Digital and physical gift cards redeemable on skordo.com and in SKORDO stores, starting at $10, supporting gifting and customer-acquisition use cases.
• The Gesine Bullock-Prado Collection A co-branded product line with chef/author Gesine Bullock-Prado that bundles signature recipes (e.g., German Cookie Spice/Lebkuchen, Butter Chicken Recipe Kit) within SKORDO's brand and distribution for home cooks and gift buyers.
• The Central Provisions x SKORDO Spice Set A co-branded culinary collaboration with Portland, ME restaurant Central Provisions, packaging the restaurant's signature spice blends into a retail spice set for home cooks.
• Barton Seaver's Wine Pairing Rubs A co-developed four-blend rub line with chef Barton Seaver, marketed as food-and-wine pairings for gifting and entertaining.

Quantifiable outcome

• 686 verified customer reviews
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Central ProvisionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSKORDO and Central Provisions, a James Beard-nominated restaurant located near SKORDO's Portland store, developed a joint spice collection. The collaboration includes French Fry Spice, Ras el Hanout, Vadouvan, and Baja Spice Mix. The restaurant became a James Beard finalist for Best New Restaurant in its first year.
• Gesine Bullock-PradocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChef, author, and baker Gesine Bullock-Prado collaborated with SKORDO on an official collection inspired by her Vermont kitchen. Products include German Cookie Spice (Lebkuchen) and Butter Chicken Recipe Kit. The collaboration began when she visited the Portland shop in 2022.
• Barton SeavercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCelebrated chef, author, and sustainable seafood advocate Barton Seaver co-created SKORDO's Wine Pairing Rubs collection. The four varietals (Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon) are designed to pair with both food and wine, combining chef's palate with sommelier's balance.
• The Getty BagelminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal Portsmouth, NH bagel shop collaborated with SKORDO to create the 'Your Everything' seasoning blend, which is used on their signature bagels. The blend is now available for retail purchase.
• Evo Kitchen + BarminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAward-winning restaurant Evo Kitchen + Bar uses SKORDO's Shawarma Spice Blend in their restaurant. SKORDO now offers this blend for home cooks to recreate the restaurant's flavors.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The Spice House: Specialty spice merchant selling small-batch hand-blended spices, salts, and curated collections through e-commerce and physical stores — closely mirrors SKORDO's product positioning and premium, hand-blended value proposition.
• Penzeys Spices: Largest US specialty spice retailer operating a DTC catalog/e-commerce model plus retail stores, with proprietary curated blends across global cuisines — directly comparable in assortment and target customer to SKORDO.
• Savory Spice Shop: Franchised specialty spice retailer with hundreds of small-batch proprietary blends sold through both physical shops and online — a near-direct comparison to SKORDO's retail-plus-DTC spice-blend model.

Broad incumbents

• Frontier Co-op: Major wholesale spice and ingredient supplier selling bulk organic and conventional spices to retailers, foodservice, and natural-products channels — relevant peer for SKORDO's wholesale/stockists ambitions and category pricing benchmarks.
• McCormick & Company: Largest global spice and seasoning manufacturer with broad CPG distribution across grocery, foodservice, and industrial channels — represents the scale competitor and benchmark for category economics in which SKORDO operates.

Emerging players

• Diaspora Co. Single-origin spice and chili brand with strong DTC and chef/wholesale channel — targets the same premium, story-driven home-cook buyer as SKORDO and competes for chef collaboration mindshare.
• Curio Spice Co. Cambridge, MA-based small-batch spice blender and framer sourcing single-origin spices; sells DTC and through select retailers — regional New England peer with a comparable chef-collaboration and premium positioning.
• Burlap & Barrel: DTC single-origin and direct-trade spice brand targeting home cooks and chefs with ethically sourced, transparently sourced seasonings — competes for the same premium home-cook segment as SKORDO, with venture backing.

Others

• Food52: Lifestyle food and home brand operating a curated marketplace plus proprietary cookware, pantry, and content — not a direct spice competitor but a comparable DTC/community-driven culinary brand overlapping on content, gift sets, and home-cook audience.

Regional players

• Oaktown Spice Shop: Oakland-based artisan spice retailer with a small-batch blending model, physical storefront, and strong local chef partnerships — analogous regional specialty spice operator but on the West Coast rather than New England.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/shopskordo
• Facebookfacebook.com/shopSKORDO
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/skordo

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SKORDO