Sometimes, you need to stop and look back at how far you've come.
Yesterday, I received news that left me genuinely speechless.
Oak City Spice Blends has been selected as the featured small-business success story in the North Carolina Community College System's inaugural 2025–2026 Economic Development Annual Report!
What makes this especially meaningful is how it happened.
North Carolina has 58 community colleges, each with a Small Business Center supporting entrepreneurs in their communities. Centers had the opportunity to nominate a business whose story demonstrated the impact of entrepreneurial education, mentoring, and support.
From among the stories considered across the state, ours was chosen.
And I am still trying to wrap my head around that.
I owe a particularly heartfelt thank-you to Suzanne M. Ross of Johnston Community College's Small Business Center, who nominated Oak City Spice Blends and has been such a wonderful advocate for me and my business.
Suzanne, thank you for believing in what I was building, for advocating for me, and for giving our story the opportunity to be told. Your confidence in me and your dedication to helping local entrepreneurs succeed mean more than I can adequately express.
The report shares that I've completed more than 84 hours of entrepreneurial training, mentoring, and counseling, including programs such as Launch JoCo and Ice House. It also highlights the growth of Oak City Spice Blends, including our expansion into retail and wholesale markets and a reported 300% increase in sales.
But those numbers don't tell the whole story.
I came into this journey with more than 30 years of culinary research, a passion for food history, and a determination to turn that knowledge into something meaningful. What I needed to learn was how to build a business around it.
And I had a lot to learn.
There were business plans to develop, financial decisions to understand, markets to explore, mistakes to learn from, and plenty of moments when I needed someone to challenge my thinking rather than simply tell me I was doing fine.
That's where entrepreneurial education and mentorship made such a difference.
To the instructors, counselors, mentors, and fellow entrepreneurs I've met through Johnston Community College, Launch JoCo, Ice House, and the broader North Carolina entrepreneurial community, thank you.
To my family, friends, customers, and everyone who has purchased a pouch of seasoning, shared a post, recommended my business, or encouraged me along the way, thank you. You are part of this story, too.
I'm proud of what we've accomplished, but I'm also very aware that I'm still learning, still growing, and still building.
If there's one thing I hope another entrepreneur takes away from this, it's that having a passion and knowing your craft are wonderful starting points. But learning how to turn that passion into a sustainable business takes education, persistence, good people in your corner, and a willingness to keep showing up.
I am deeply honored that our story was selected for this inaugural report.
Sometimes, the most meaningful recognition isn't just about what you've accomplished. It's about the people who helped you discover what was possible.
Thank you, Johnston Community College, the Small Business Center Network, and the North Carolina Community College System.
And thank you for allowing Oak City Spice Blends to be part of this story.
Michel McNeese
Founder, Oak City Spice Blends
Spice Blends Inspired by the Past, Perfected for Today.
Read the report here:
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