Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1357477
What is unique about your business? Central Avenue Meats is unique to Great Falls both in our product offerings and in our business practices. The beef we get from the McCafferty Ranch in Belt is fresh, local, 100% grass-fed (year-round) and finished, and dry-aged, which makes it more nutritious, higher-quality, and more sustainable to the local community than what is offered at other grocery stores. And being unique as a whole animal butchery gives us the advantage in providing custom cuts to our customers, as well as a deeper understanding of where each cut comes from, and how it is best prepared. Tell us a little more about why you chose to go with a local rancher and a little bit about that process. We partnered with the McCafferty Ranch for two very simple reasons - the quality of the meat and the economic importance of supporting a ranch in our community. Joel McCafferty and his family are raising beef that are on the same level of quality (or higher) as the meat that I was working with in Denver and New York City, especially because the cows are healthy and humanely-treated. Additionally, the McCafferty's have gone above and beyond for us, including helping us load the beef into our shop every three weeks. And during these challenging times, we have to be intentional about supporting local ranchers and local agriculture if we want our community to survive. We're just fortunate enough that our local supplier also offers us the best quality! What has been your biggest success? Our biggest success has been the support from the Great Falls community, especially local restaurants like Enbar, Roadhouse Diner, Nourish, and 5th and Wine. We are grateful for their support and seeing how they utilize and take our offerings to the next level is amazing! Every time we are able to contribute to a great meal that people share together is an honor. What has been your biggest challenge? We have been incredibly blessed as a business, but not without challenges. Surprisingly (or not), our biggest challenge has probably been helping people become familiar with the model of a whole-animal butcher shop and why we don't have certain cuts available all the time. Even with that, people have been overwhelmingly gracious and patient with us and have often found new favorite steaks due to the lack of better- known cuts. What have you done to overcome the challenge(s) of 2020? For us, the largest challenge of 2020 has been the lack of community events in the downtown area, which is difficult considering the momentum that Downtown Great Falls has had in the last couple years. Like everyone else, it's been tough to adjust to the new way of life in the age of COVID-19, and it hurts to see our neighbors struggling to stay afloat. However, the downtown community has gone out of their way to support us, and if anything, it's made us more grateful and intentional about partnering with other local businesses to help one another. And we expect these partnerships to grow and continue, with great results, into the future! What are your plans for 2021 or in the future to grow and develop your business? In the upcoming year, we are excited to increase our product offerings, with more flavors of sausage and biltong (our South African-style jerky), as well as beginning to offer special classes and events. In short, we look forward to continuing to engage and support the community that has supported us so generously! Anything else you would like to share or let people know about your business? God has blessed us with high-quality ranchers, excellent business partners, a beautiful location, and a great community filled with supportive customers. To anyone who has helped us so far, thank you! And if you haven't made it in yet, please let us share these blessings of ours with you! Article by Drew Hicks 43 Great Falls Area Chamber of Commerce www.greatfallschamber.org F E AT U R E D Q & A Photo by Photo Solutions