Meet the Maker: Tulip Tree Creamery

Tulip Tree Creamery

Name:  Fons Smits
Company:  Tulip Tree Creamery

What do you sell?  Small Batch Cheese made from Indiana milk

When did you start your business?  2014

Website TulipTreeCreamery.com
Social Media Twitter @tuliptreecheese;  Instagram @tuliptreecreamery

Founded in 2014 by Fons Smits and Laura Davenport, Tulip Tree Creamery is a small batch artisan cheese company in Indianapolis, Indiana. We proudly create traditional European Style cheeses with a distinctive American flair. Our unique cheeses are sold locally via farmers markets and retail outlets and distributed nationally from coast to coast. Our community education outreach includes cheese making and pairing classes available to private groups and ticketed public events. We’re happy to say that Tulip Tree Creamery is “so stinkin’ good!”

Favorite food dish of all time and why.  I really miss some things I grew up with in the Netherland, like the fried snacks like kroket or frikandel or the berehap or turkey-stick. There are too many.  or the typical Dutch dishes like Stampot, hutspot where everything potatoes and vegetables are all mixed in one big pot and served with smoked sausage and gravy.

What was the hardest thing about starting your business? One of the hardest things is to make it all balance, starting a business takes a lot of time energy and money, and a lot of private time. Filling the needs of the business trying to make it all work and not going crazy. Combine that with the financial pressure and it easily becomes overwhelming.

Where do you see your business in 2020?  The company will continue to grow with specialty cheeses which are beautiful in color with amazing flavors from our current line and from future new products  of some we are already working on such as the double cream blue Chicory or the delicate Queen Anne’s Lace.  We will grow to about 3 times the current size and expand on the classes to give our customers all the opportunity to learn about how to make these wonderful products and how to use it.

Find this maker’s product at the Carmel Market District!