Navy chaplain's love for Spain sparked flourishing import food business
Mark St. John Erickson
Two credit cards, a Web site and a single product may not seem like the most promising way to start a business.
But when retired Navy chaplain Don Harris and his eldest son, Tim, began selling imported serrano ham via the Internet in late 1996, they tapped into a pent-up appetite for traditional Spanish food that has been nothing short of voracious.
Even more unexpected was the booming retail demand that crowded the tiny showroom they opened after moving their company — La Tienda, or "The Store" — into a 20,000-square-foot warehouse in Toano in 2004.
As their online and catalog business prospered...