Wake Robin Foods

Loiter, in partnership with Food Depot to Health, have teamed up to purchase Wake Robin Foods, as a strategy to ensure predictable revenue streams to East Cleveland urban farmers.

Wake Robin Foods was started in 2013 by a father-daughter team: Pat Murray, a retired physician, and his daughter Molly Murray, who had experience working on small organic farms and fermenting food. They set out to make delicious, healthy food, support local sustainable agriculture, and minimize the environmental impact. Today, these products are sold in 57 stores across two states. Wake Robin was looking for a buyer- and Loiter stepped in to fulfill that role.

Both companies have aligned values for sustainability as well as supporting local farmers and the local economy. This business acquisition will fulfill that through redeveloping the local food system by establishing a closed loop, community owned supply chain. In addition, this form of enterprise based activism supports Loiter’s Community wealth building promise to establish a business trust in which East Cleveland residents are its beneficiaries.

This will be done through the investment in resident-owned micro-enterprises that will grow the herbs, aromatics, cabbage, carrots, and beets that make up Wake Robin’s products.
In turn, residents can capture some of the growing market share that Wake Robin Foods will realize which will increase cash flow for home owner farmers and provide solid appreciation over time. This will also lead to an expansion of the local farms in the Cleveland/East Cleveland area. Through this expansion, we will be removing many of the barriers to entry for small, black, urban farmers in the public food procurement markets and allowing them to participate on a far larger scale than before.

We are seeking mission investors to not only scale Wake Robin but to scale the farms as we expand the infrastructure and technical assistance to meet the soon to come demands of this social enterprise. With Wake Robin being available in two states, our goal is to expand throughout the Midwest and eventually to reach a national level. Contact ismail@loiter.us for inquiries and further information.