CAMDEN—Summertime is for light snacking, and Allison Warren capitalized on the whole grazing trend by opening her first business, Camden Charcuterie, this past Memorial Day.

The sit-down restaurant at 56 Elm Street in Camden has a beer and wine license, but many customers prefer to purchase her custom boxes and boards for takeout.

Warren worked hard to get the new business up and running with financial support from family and friends. And that's not all. Getting up at 8 or 9 a.m. to prep for Camden Charcuterie, the 29-year-old entrepreneur works all day and then goes to her second job at 4 p.m. as a manager for the restaurant American Flatbread in Rockport, where she's been for 10 years.

"We do weddings and catering for American Flatbread, so I took a lot of those skills to create Camden Charcuterie," she said. "This is the first time I've done something on my own."

Her cross-over skills in ordering for restaurants and catering helped her form the structure for her business, which offers custom charcuterie boards, mini individual boxes, and party platters. 

The store's cold case has divided sections that offer a range of locally sourced Italian cured meats, cheeses, fruits, vegetables, nuts, sweets, and even custom spreads, such as fig jam and an apricot spread. Customers can go in and order anything they want. Sometimes, it's a snack box to take on a local schooner, or a quick mini box for a picnic outside. But so far, her biggest customers have been offices and families ordering the party platters.

"I had to teach myself how to create a charcuterie board by researching a lot of examples on Pinterest and watching videos on how to fold the meats into attractive shapes," she said. "I thought it would be fun to let people pick and choose what they want. Each week, we rotate out the offerings with different sweet and savory tastes and textures."

Further cementing her marketing skills, she canvassed businesses throughout Camden with pamphlets and a small sample cup of charcuterie to let people know her business was open.

The most significant business challenge has been managing all of the moving parts while working three or four nights a week at American Flatbread. Given the public demand, she also hired two young women from American Flatbread to assist her part-time in the store.

Warren also hosts a paint night at the store, which she plans to host once or twice a month.

"People have been excited about this store; it's something new and different," she said.

Visit Camden Charcuterie and learn more about its offerings.

Kay Stephens can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com