Cheese Importers

What Cheese Importers does

Cheese Importers is a privately held, family-owned specialty food retailer and wholesale distributor headquartered in a single facility at 103 Main Street, Longmont, Colorado. Founded in 1976 by Linda and Lyman White, the company operates two business lines out of one location: a walk-in retail storefront organized into themed merchandising rooms (Fromage & Charcuterie Cooler, Olive Bar, Kitchen Atelier, Mercato Italia, Provence Marché, Madame P's Boudoir, Kids Magique Corner) featuring 500+ international and local cheeses, charcuterie, Mediterranean antipasti, Italian and French imports, kitchen tools, gifts, fragrance, and toys; and a wholesale division supplying hundreds of Colorado front-range restaurants, natural grocers, and co-ops via direct field sales and a CutandDry-based catalog. The retail experience is supported by expert cheese mongers and weekend sampling; the wholesale offering is supported by an in-house Production Facility that cuts, shreds, and grates cheeses to order with custom packaging and labeling, including fresh, anti-caking-agent-free foodservice cuts.

Revenue mechanics are predominantly transactional: in-store retail markups on imported specialty goods (pricing is not publicly disclosed and is communicated in-store only), B2B wholesale terms negotiated by sales representatives with licensed businesses (wholesale is restricted to licensees per stated policy), and a sub-brand café, Moxie Bread Co., offering fresh-milled heirloom wheat bread, French-inspired pastries, espresso, sandwiches, and salads daily 9am–3pm. The only e-commerce surface is a Shopify-based gift card storefront; no consumer e-commerce for product exists. The company has no mobile app, no disclosed API, no integrations, no patents, no funding rounds, no external shareholders, and no documented M&A or restructuring activity; ownership and operating control remain with the founding family.

Customer segments are horizontal and dual-channel: (1) retail consumers in the Longmont / northern Colorado catchment who value curated imported goods, expert service, and an experiential alternative to conventional grocery, and (2) licensed B2B buyers — primarily independent restaurants, natural grocers, and co-ops along the Colorado front-range — who require a reliable specialty foodservice supplier. Marketing is limited to organic Facebook and Instagram plus in-store experience; there is no documented paid acquisition, no app, and no loyalty program beyond gift cards. The geographic footprint is intentionally narrow — regional at most, with a hard restriction that wholesale channels serve only Colorado licensees — which both concentrates risk and reinforces the relationship-driven wholesale moat described above.

Name

Cheese Importers

Legal name

Cheese Importers

Website

https://cheeseimporters.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1976

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Family-owned specialty food retailer and wholesaler in Longmont, Colorado, offering 500+ artisanal cheeses, charcuterie, Mediterranean and French imports, and gourmet goods through a flagship retail store, a Colorado-front-range wholesale division, and an on-site Moxie Bread Co. bakery.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Food Retail

NAICS

Other Specialty Food Retailers (44529), Cheese Manufacturing (311513), Commercial Bakeries (311812)

SIC

Retail-Food Stores (5400), Dairy Products (2020)

akta.pro primary industry

Cheese Shops & Fromageries (CRAHAGAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cheese Manufacturing (AFAKAKAB), Cheese Wholesale (AFAIAEAC), Bread & Pastry Specialty Stores (CRAHAGAC)

Keywords

• Artisan cheese retail
• Specialty food wholesale
• Imported gourmet foods
• Charcuterie and cheese
• European specialty imports

Headquarters

HQ city

Longmont

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Retail Store Sales: In-store sales of artisanal cheeses, gourmet foods, specialty items including charcuterie, olive oils, vinegars, spices, chocolates, pastries, as well as non-food items such as French tablecloths, soaps, perfume, jewelry, toys, and kitchen tools. The store operates 7 days a week with extended hours.
2. Wholesale/B2B Distribution: Wholesale division supplies hundreds of Colorado restaurants, natural grocers, and co-ops with artisanal cheeses, premium deli meats, beverages, dairy, charcuterie, olive oils, vinegars, spices, dried fruits, nuts, chocolates, crackers, flours, grains, honeys, jams, condiments, and pastas.
3. Moxie Bread Co. Café: Fresh-milled heirloom wheat bread, French-inspired pastries, espresso drinks, sandwiches, and salads offered at the Moxie Bread Co. counter within Cheese Importers, operating daily 9am-3pm.
4. Gift Card Sales: Digital and physical gift cards sold through Shopify, redeemable at the retail store and potentially online.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Cheese Importers supplies artisan cheeses, charcuterie, and specialty foods through two channels: a retail storefront at 103 Main Street, Longmont, Colorado offering 500+ cheeses and curated gourmet goods organized into themed rooms, and a wholesale division serving hundreds of Colorado restaurants, natural grocers, and co-ops. The company also operates an in-house production facility that cuts, shreds, and grates cheese to order with custom packaging, and an on-site bakery, Moxie Bread Co., offering fresh-milled breads and French-inspired pastries.

Product overview

Cheese Importers is a family-owned specialty food retailer and wholesaler based in Longmont, Colorado, operating for nearly 50 years. The company offers a diverse portfolio of products centered around artisan cheeses (500+ varieties) and gourmet specialty foods. The retail experience is organized into themed sections including the Fromage & Charcuterie Cooler (featuring international and local cheeses and premium charcuterie), Olive Bar (Mediterranean olives and antipasti), Kitchen Atelier (cookware and kitchen tools), Mercato Italia (Italian imports), Provence Marché (French-inspired home goods and textiles), Kids Magique Corner (children's toys and gifts), and Madame P's Boudoir (luxury personal items and fragrance). The company also operates Moxie Bread Co. as an on-site bakery, maintains a Production Facility for custom cheese cutting/shredding, and runs a Wholesale Division serving Colorado restaurants and grocers. The overall offering represents a unified French country market experience combining specialty foods, kitchen accessories, home goods, and gifts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Moxie Bread Co: A bakery operation offering fresh milled heirloom wheat bread, French inspired pastries, espresso drinks, sandwiches, and salads. Located within Cheese Importers and open daily 9am-3pm.

Products and services

• Moxie Bread Co. Bakery and Café An on-site bakery sub-brand located within the Cheese Importers retail store offering fresh-milled heirloom wheat bread, French-inspired pastries, espresso drinks, sandwiches, and salads to walk-in customers. Open daily 9am-3pm.
• Wholesale Distribution Division B2B wholesale supply of artisan cheeses, premium deli meats, charcuterie, olive oils, vinegars, spices, dried fruits, nuts, chocolates, crackers, flours, grains, honeys, jams, condiments, and pastas to licensed restaurants, natural grocers, and co-ops along the Colorado front-range, with ordering supported by the CutandDry catalog platform.
• Custom Cheese Production and Packaging Service In-house production department that cuts, shreds, and grates cheese freshly to order, providing custom packaging and labeling for retail-sized cuts and fresh, anti-caking-agent-free product for foodservice customers.
• Cheese Importers Gift Cards Digital and physical gift cards sold via the Cheese Importers Shopify storefront, redeemable at the Longmont retail store.

Quantifiable outcome

• 500+ varieties of international and local cheeses available
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Bedford Cheese Shop: NYC specialty cheese shop offering 200+ cheeses with cheesemonger expertise and themed tastings — another close small-format specialty cheese retailer comparable to Cheese Importers' flagship experience.
• Murray's Cheese: Iconic NYC specialty cheese retailer and wholesaler with a flagship shop, in-house cheesemonger expertise, and a wholesale distribution arm serving restaurants and grocers — the closest analog to Cheese Importers' combined retail + wholesale + cut-to-order model.
• Zingerman's Deli & Specialty Foods: Ann Arbor-based specialty foods destination built around curated cheese, charcuterie, pantry items and kitchen goods, with an experiential store format and mail-order — directly mirrors Cheese Importers' themed-room, European-import positioning.
• Di Bruno Bros. Philadelphia specialty foods retailer and importer of cheeses, charcuterie, olive oils and pantry items with both retail locations and a wholesale/catering business — comparable dual retail/wholesale gourmet format.
• Formaggio Kitchen: Cambridge, MA artisanal cheese shop and importer offering hundreds of cheeses, charcuterie, pantry items, and kitchenware with a knowledgeable cheesemonger staff — strong product-portfolio and customer-experience analog to Cheese Importers.
• Cowgirl Creamery: Point Reyes-based artisan cheese shop and producer combining in-house cheese manufacturing with a flagship retail and wholesale presence, similar to Cheese Importers' combined production/retail/wholesale model.

Emerging players

• Curdbox / Cheese Subscription Services: Direct-to-consumer online cheese subscription clubs — emerging players that address the digital channel gap Cheese Importers has not entered, serving exactly the artisanal cheese buyer who would otherwise shop in-store.

Broad incumbents

• Sysco Specialty Cheese & Dairy: Largest U.S. foodservice distributor with a specialty cheese division supplying restaurants — competes with Cheese Importers' wholesale arm on B2B supply to the same restaurant customers in Colorado.
• Whole Foods Market: National broad-line natural foods retailer carrying artisanal cheeses, charcuterie, and gourmet pantry items — competes with Cheese Importers on specialty food assortment, but lacks the experiential themed-room format and cheesemonger-led service.

Others

• Natural Grocers: Colorado-headquartered natural and organic grocery chain listed as a wholesale customer of Cheese Importers — illustrates how the company fits into the regional specialty food supply chain and its scale gap vs. natural foods retailers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/cheeseimporters103
• Instagraminstagram.com/cheese_importers

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Cheese Importers