Inspiring Conversations with Patrick Overton of Dry Guys Pantry Supply

Today we’d like to introduce you to Patrick Overton.

Patrick, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Cooking my whole life, vegan since 2015, and striving for sustainability daily, my 2020 resolution was to “zero-wasting” my plant-based pantry…I accidentally started a business.

I began making pancake mix, tofu scramble seasoning, cashew cheese powder, and various spice blends for my personal use, but I realize that other lazy, low-waste vegans would love them too. A culinary friend and I began comparing recipes, sizing up our batches, and jarring them up for a blossoming farmers’ market scene.

More recipes have joined the lineup, the jars have turned to compostable pouches, and Dry Guys is now a solo endeavor; but the mission has never wavered: plant-based dry goods in a low-waste format. With a dozen retail partners, booths at half a dozen farmers markets, and a handful of kitchen partners, Dry Guys Pantry Supply has grown substantially from the home-kitchen Covid passion project it started as.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Of all the things I can (and do) complain about, the one that continues to be a headache is remembering to write down what I’ve done in the kitchen. As a play-it-by-ear chef, quantizing these recipes to make them repeatable takes a little bit of the sparkle out of the kitchen. Being able to share these recipes in homes and kitchens across town more than makes up for it.

I’ve gotten plenty used to it all, and have systems to help myself, but now the issue has become filming it all. Eyeroll. If bookkeeping, graphic design, and salesmanship weren’t already enough to figure out how to juggle, now I’m tossed videographer and spokesperson to handle. Fun. It can’t be too bad if those are the only things coming to mind. I’ve learned to be content with not being able to do it all, at least right away. Being out of a product one week, or missing a farmers market another week is fine.

Ideally, it wouldn’t happen, but I’ve kept my sanity with lenience. It’s been a slow growth, but there is steady progress and increased recognition and partnerships, and sales. The enthusiasm I hear from some farmer’s markets makes it easy to keep going til the next hurdle. A quickly approaching hurdle: more space for bigger things.

We’ve been impressed with Dry Guys Pantry Supply, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Here’s the farmers market spiel: Dry Guys makes all the dry goods needed for your zero-waste pantry. Small-batch, low-waste, and plant-based. Pancake and baking mixes. mac n cheese mix, vegan staples, spice blends, seasonings, and such–all in compostable packaging. For the time being. By the end of the 2023 market season, there will be zero-waste refill options so you can bring and fill your own jar or spice tin and pay by ounce.

Our packages include QR codes that take you direct to vegan-leaning recipe cards and cooking ideas. While everything Dry Guys will produce will be vegan, the recipes work just the same with any milk, butter, mayo, etc. (It’s all damn good on meat too). A handful of kitchens and vendors around Nashville even use our products how they see fit. Notably, The Wild Cow’s weekend brunch gravy, and our Nashville Hot on Moosehead Kettle Corn that you can find at Nissan Stadium and Geodis Park.

While Dry Guys has lofty sustainability goals, it is imperative to do things right and not just to turn a profit. So any waste produced is aimed to be eventually worked out of the process and in the meantime, properly disposed of. Scout’s honor!

Lastly, it is just me. One guy. Patrick. Aside from some graphics and (upcycled) merch made by friends, and the first few months with a business partner, I have put together the recipes, packages, labels, and website, and ran every single farmers market for 3 years. So I am always appreciative to our… erm, my loyal customers and every new one.

What would you say has been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
There is only so much you can do. When it’s one man doing everything, there has to be some self-forgiveness if you can’t be everywhere, you can’t always be stocked on everything, and you can’t always make the sale. Last year was the first full summer of multiple weekly farmers markets and it wore me down.

Now that I’ve got a routine, I made sure to schedule the markets, space them out in bunches, and plan my days around them. So instead of rushing to and from the markets, (sometimes two a day) I’m packing lunches and a book. But that’s maybe I can only do a certain market once a month, so I’m going to be sure to be there when I can and make an impression. And if it’s a slow market, that’s what the book is for.

One of the books was called “Profit First,” a business model tutorial to regiment spending. First, put aside a sliver for safekeeping. Make the business sustainable and compensate yourself. Remember the necessary bits like tax, bills, and dues. THEN what’s remaining is what you can go forward and work with. It’s readjusted my sense of priority with what I really should do next. It’s about working efficiently, not doing more or doing it bigger. I’ve also applied the Profit First concept in my life as well and it helps balance the job as a whole, but only after I am taken care of.

Pricing:

• All products $4-12
• Pay-per-oz options coming soon.

Contact Info:

• Website: dryguys615.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/dryguys615
• Facebook: facebook.com/dryguys615

Image Credits
Diana Lee Zadlo