Rachel Swan and Karen “Ratchet” Mattison
PieandMightymsp.com
On Instagram @pieandmightymsp
by Kelly Savage, Corcoran Neighborhood Volunteer
Pie – a comfort food, treat and dessert that may inspire an after dinner conversation – just thinking about pie brings so many good feelings, memories and emotions. I can only hope pie effects everyone so positively. I certainly think it must the way Pie & Mighty have been carving out their piece of the market these last few years. With their winning philosophy, “Pie is meant to share” they show it easily bridges across cultures and generations.
Rachel Swan started young in the service industry, and she’s never really left it for long. Though never a baker, she has had her hand in nearly every aspect of the industry over the years and really enjoys interacting with people the best. She thrives on conversations and building relationships and always wanted to take those experiences, skills and relationships and open a business, although she wasn’t quite sure what that might be.
After hitting a real low and losing some important people in her life, her incredibly supportive wife and partner pushed her to take a leap of faith. She and a prospective business partner started down the road of opening a café pie restaurant. Ratchet was able to help by keeping the lights on and provide benefits with her day job, but, unfortunately, things did not go as planned and Rachel, not a baker herself, was left without a business partner, a restaurant or a pie maker.
Undeterred, she turned her Corcoran home into a test kitchen and used friends and family as guinea pigs – sending out test pies with one piece gone – selling them for cost and sending them with surveys until, finally, she perfected the recipes. From this model, and adding Ratchet as business partner/spread sheet afficianado, the online pie company, Pie & Mighty was born and quickly moved into All Saints Episcopal Church so they could reclaim their home kitchen. Now putting out 80-100 pies a week, Pie & Mighty will be moving to 3553 Chicago Avenue South, adjacent to Jakeeno’s Pizza & Pasta, hopefully in October – just in time for the holidays!
Although not in Corcoran, the location was picked with intention. Rachel and Ratchet have lived and worked in Corcoran and would love to move back to the neighborhood. They wanted to keep their business near them, their friends and the diverse community they consider their extended family. Though they looked near and far, one of those old relationships ended up landing them their new South Minneapolis location.
With both being long-time customers and Ratchet a former classmate of owner Patty Keegan’s, they decided to ask just what was up with the empty space next to Jakeeno’s. The inquiry paid off. While you will still need to sign up for The Pie Loop and use the on line order system for the foreseeable future, the new storefront will allow for extended pie pick up times, and possibly more, once Pie & Mighty get settled in. To sign up, visit their website listed above.
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