If you’ve visited or met with our Sales team at an industry event recently, you may have walked away with a Raleigh-made candle, snack or custom keepsake. At Visit Raleigh, we’re proud to exclusively share locally made products with meeting professionals interested in Raleigh, N.C., for future meetings.

As Visit Raleigh supports local creative entrepreneurs and small businesses by partnering with them as gift item partners, we not only help strengthen our local economy (by keeping our dollars local), we also give meeting professionals a meaningful taste of what makes Raleigh, N.C., so unique. By highlighting homegrown brands, we create authentic, memorable experiences while shining a spotlight on the talent and passion that thrives in our destination.

Visit with us at an upcoming event, and you may walk away with a gift from one of these local makers! (Note: This isn't a comprehensive list, as we're always working with new partners to offer new tastes of Raleigh, N.C.)
 

Videri Chocolate Factory

Pulling inspiration from the N.C. state motto "esse quam videri," Sam Ratto and Videri Chocolate Factory create bean-to-bar chocolate in downtown Raleigh's historic Warehouse District. Sam approaches the agricultural side of chocolate-making with integrity and passion while working to support cacao farmers who are committed to high-quality beans and sustainable farming practices. The factory's versatile chocolate-making ranges from bars to bonbons to hot chocolate mix. We're partial to sharing their story and flavors through their bars, like the Dark Milk Cocoa Nib Crunch with Sea Salt or Dark Milk Vesta Sweet Spicy Crunch Bar. 

 

Raleigh Denim Workshop

Also anchored in the Warehouse District, Raleigh Denim hand-crafts high-quality jeans and clothing with keen attention to detail. Sarah Yarborough and Victor Lytvinenko began their personal quest to create a perfect pair of jeans and created a bustling textile enterprise in the process. Their Curatory is both a retail store and workshop where visitors can watch as clothes are made by local hands. And, while Visit Raleigh doesn't gift raw selvage jeans to everyone we meet, we are the all-time-high purchaser of the Raleigh Denim Tote Bag and proud of it.

 

Ford's Gourmet Foods

"We're Talkin' Serious" when we talk about the Ford family and their Bone Suckin' Sauce. Starting in 1946 with patriarch A.J. Ford selling produce from the back of his truck, Ford's Foods grew into a regional produce distributor and international gourmet food supplier now renowned for their sweet and tangy barbecue sauce as well as other gourmet treats. We return to Ford's frequently for their top-notch gift basket-making skills and friendly, knowledgeable service that runs generations deep. We suggest finding their Southern Yum Chocolate Pecan Brittle the next time you're at the State Farmers Market; it's worth the trip alone.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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1 in 6 Snacks

Coming from a family with a long history in the snack food industry, Josh Monahan decided upon graduating from North Carolina State University in 2017 that he would continue the tradition with 1 in 6 Snacks, a name that represents the one in six people in America who do not know where their next meal will come from. A portion of each bag of chips sold goes to the food bank, and their flagship product, Carolina Kettle Chips, is all-natural, gluten-free, kosher-certified and cooked with 100% sunflower oil. Originally starting with six flavors of chips, Monahan now has 11 flavors, including Sir Walter Cream Cheese & Chive, Bee Sting Honey Siracha and more.

 

House of Swank Clothing Company

One Raleigh's most well-known silkscreen-smiths, John Pugh, has been pressing ink to shirt for more than a decade now. Originally performing live music in local bars and blues jams as Johnny Swank, Pugh found a way to offset bar tabs by selling Johnny Swank Blues merch T-shirts. Making merch shirts soon grew into other shirts focusing on his love for N.C., music and food, and in 2012, House of Swank was born.

 

Escazú Chocolates

Originally one of only a handful of bean-to-bar chocolate makers in the U.S., Escazú Chocolates owners Danielle Centeno and Tiana Young today run an all-women operation out of their space in downtown Raleigh. Celebrating over 15 years in Raleigh, Escazú famously creates single-origin chocolate bars as well as hand-crafted single chocolates and specialty seasonal treats (don't miss their summertime cult favorites—ice cream sandwiches and push-pops to fight off the heat). Escazu Chocolates is moving to an expanded space in Gateway Plaza in North Raleigh this summer.

 

Trophy Brewing Company

Trophy co-owners Chris Powers and Woody Lockwood have come quite far since their days of trading personal trophies for beers. Now expanded from its three-barrel operation in the Trophy Brewing + Pizza location to a 20-barrel operation at Trophy Brewery + Taproom, Powers and Lockwood share their brews nationwide as well as in more locations in downtown Raleigh—Bend Bar and their bottle shop State of Beer.

 

Designed For Joy

Designed For Joy (DFJ) is a jewelry and accessories company founded by Kristen Sydow and Cary Heise. DFJ supports women in crisis, with stability through immediate employment. Kristen and Cary and their team envision a community where every woman has the opportunity to earn a living wage through safe and dignified work. For DFJ, a living wage means an income that gives women positive choices rather than making desperate decisions when trying to provide food for family and paying rent. DFJ's hope is for their artisans to find confidence in themselves, learn to trust community and grow in their faith while working with DFJ. For more information, click here.


Gabi's

Gabi Angelini is a lively and charismatic 24 year old with Down syndrome and the cofounder of Gabi’s. After she graduated high school, she ran into a problem that 82% of the intellectual-and-developmental-disabilities community faces—no one would hire her. Her friends were struggling to find work, too, so Gabi and her family decided they needed a plan for Gabi’s future. 

This is how Gabi’s Grounds became Gabi’s—Powered by Special Abilities. Gabi’s additional component—PALS (for Packaging, Assembling, Labeling, Shipping)—contracts with other businesses and helps with these needs. Since making this transition and moving into the warehouse, the company has grown their team to 43, with a goal of enabling and empowering other individuals with special abilities. For more information about Gabi’s, click here.

 

This is just a sampling of the local vendors we rely upon to help tell Raleigh, N.C.'s story tangibly throughout the year. Visit Raleigh is thankful to have partners who understand our mission and work in tandem with us to promote our destination of driven, creative people who are determined to help the area grow and prosper.

Have questions or want to know more about Raleigh, N.C.? Contact our sales team today!