Food

The Urban Canning Company to relaunch with St. Pete’s Brick Street Farms in 2020

Illene Sofranko, former owner of The Urban Canning Company, announced last month she was closing down the local business storefront. Little did we all know, she had other plans brewing behind the scenes. She’s partnering with Shannon O’Malley of Brick Street Farms to bring a new experience to St. Pete.

The Urban Canning Company is moving underneath the Brick Street Farms umbrella to become Brick Street Farms Canning Company. Learn more:

“When Illene Sofranko announced the closing of Urban Canning Company’s storefront on Instagram last month, it left followers and pickling enthusiasts devastated.

However, Sofranko doesn’t consider the closing as a bad thing, she sees it as an evolution. 

“Throughout the last six years, I’ve been able to figure out what my skill sets are and what I’m amazing at,” Sofranko tells CL.

When it came time to move on from her brick-and-mortar, Sofranko linked up with Brick Street Farms, a local boutique, artisan farm.

“By working closely with Shannon [O’Malley], we found out our skill sets are complementary, so we decided to join forces.”

Sofranko says Brick Street Farms co-owner Shannon O’Malley initially wanted to carry The Urban Canning Co. in her farm market, but when Sofranko went for a farm tour, she knew she there was potential for something more. 

“One of the first times I came to deliver [products], I asked for a farm tour and I had this overwhelming feeling that I was in something cool,” Sofranko explains. 

The two women developed a friendship that evolved into a partnership. The new duo plan on relaunching The Urban Canning Co. underneath the Brick Street Farms umbrella as Brick Street Canning Company. O’Malley is planning an overall Brick Street Farms expansion, scheduled to debut late 2020, as a “cultivation hub.” “

The “cultivation hub” and Brick Street Canning Company is scheduled to debut mid- to late-2020. Find out more about it here. 

PHOTO COURTESY OF BRICK STREET FARMS