This is Bloomberg Business Week with Carol Messer from Bloomberg Radio. Well, I've had my first lobster of the season, courtesy of No in Connecticut and Costello's Clamshack. It was pretty amazing clams and lobsters they sell there. But I gotta say when I think of lobster, I definitely think of Maine, which accounts for nearly all of America's total lobster harvest. It's roughly a half a billion dollar year industry for
the state of Maine. So here with how the business is going, how the season is shaping Applet's head to Maine and to Mark Merrell. He is the founder and CEO of Get Maine Lobster. It's seven online delivery service of lobsters and more. They've been doing it for several decades. And he joins us on the phone from Portland's Maine. Mark, nice to have you here. How are you doing great? Thanks for having me. Well, I'm jealous. It's one of
the most beautiful states in the country. Um. First of all, before we look forward, I want to look back a little bit. Tell me about the past year and what it was like for you guys. It was it was pretty wild. Um, you know, demand spikes for services like ours. It felt like it felt like overnight. It wasn't a little gradual. Um, but you know, sourcing and supply chain,
the stress on set up tops, box materials. It was interesting all these things emerged that impact the ability to move a good like lobster to say, you know, your house and New York or someone in Los Angeles, and um, we had the benefit of you know, food service and casinos and cruise ships. Right, they were no longer big lobster customers. So we had plenty of lobster available for quite a long time, for you know, a good eight ten months. We didn't have to fight for sourcing. Um,
that's changed today. But well that's an interesting Well initially, you know, it's interesting, you know, Mark, we talked to a lot of folks and they say, you know, initially we thought our business we were doomed. Was it like that for you guys initially or was it No? People were saying okay, because they quickly moved online. They just were ordering more and more. Which one was it? So my financial advisors said, hey, we have to have the talk.
You need to get prepared just in case and they said, yes, that would be the responsible thing for us to do. Let's do that. I said, However, what I'm noticing is higher than normal velocity with orders, and so I think we're going to have the opposite effect. You know, we did. We grew. It's pretty wild. That is crazy. Wow. During the pandemic um and as you said, like so many of us and so many companies, big, small, middle size just kind of being able to tap the supply chain
that they needed. Um. And that's even with as you said, the cruise industry, right, they were they weren't there anymore, right, Yeah, they're no longer customers. So think about a large purveyor and they have stocked in their freezers that are you know, the size of small homes, and they're preparing to release that you know in the off season. Well all of
their customers left overnight, so they were freaking out. Um. But then there was companies like mine that said, hey, I need to fill my freezer, Can I take yours? And then so so it shifted right and and that was great. And plus you know some of them you know, turned around and thirty days later they were filling online as well. So good for them. For being able to pivot. So we were ahead. I was just to say, you know, we were designed perfectly for an instant So what are
you seeing right now? Demand is still very very high. However, supply is extremely low. Um. Example, it's Father's Day weekend. We sold a lot of lobster roal kids, and I did not procure the last of my lobster meat until four o'clock last night. That's just in time, just in times down to the second. Well, we were actually prepared to note we have an email in queue notify people that we're gonna have to delay their order a day. And you know the catch has been low. Um, that's
typical this time of year. There's less traps in the water here in Maine. Um, I think they're waiting until um, you know, the lobster's get a little bit closer to shore. You know, they're migrating right now, head into you know, cooler waters, better environment for them to begin to shed their shell and them. So, yeah, it's an interesting time.
It's sourcing is very very difficult. We don't have access to the what I call hero products you know that people love, you know, larger tales and things like that. You want to get back to Mark Merrel. He is founder and CEO of Get Main Lobster. It's a seven online delivery service of lobsters and more, delivering seafood from docks to doorsteps in twenty four hours. They've been doing it for several decades. Mark still with us on the
phone and portly made. So okay, as you said, the catch is low this time of year, supply is very low. So how much is my lobster going to cost me? Uh? It's I've never seen it this high this time of year. And you know, really the live lobster isn't too crazy, but you know, it's when you converted into lobster meat, you know. I'm sure he saw in the New York Times thirty four dollar lobster roll. I mean that's real
and uh wow. Um. The interesting thing though, is, you know consumers are are being understanding and they really want lobster. Demands still really high. Um, you know, so I won't see the price moving much unless catch increases dramatically, which it is supposed to. Um. Even then, I don't know if they'll be a drastic drop or not. I haven't
seen anything like this before. It's interesting. It is interesting. Well, tell me a little about because you guys, I know, think about and are involved with sustainable fisheries in terms of getting your seafood. I think we just take mark for granted that fish or lobsters or shrimp or scallops or whatever. Oysters. Um. I spend time in the Long Island Sound, so I see the lobster traps. You know we have to dodge them. Um. You go a little bit further app by Fisher's Island, you see um or
off of Oyster Bay, you see the oyster traps. What's involved in in farming when it comes to fish specifically, and how do you do it in a in a healthy way? Is sustainable way? Um? Well, it's it relates to lobster and the we can't catch anything that's blow point nine pounds, nothing above four. And if we catch our pregnant female, we mark them by cutting a v notch and one of their chins, and then we put her back in right, and she's going to help breed
a whole bunch of more lobsters. And everything's still done by hands. And lobstermen are independent. They're very much committed and have been since the industry started with sustainability. I mean, it's a huge markets remain right, we need to keep it going. In the same thing with main scuts, right, the season is not very long. Um We're always very thoughtful about any kind of species that we're fishing to make sure that it's not over. Fish has plenty of
time to recoup. You know, consider seafood industry FEA. Food consumption is increased dramatically in the last two so you know, we really have to as consumers, we really should be thinking about diversifying a palette. Uh, not just focusing in one particular species extent your favorite. You know, venture out, try some new things. Restaurants are always bringing new things
to market. We just started selling um um a trout that comes out of Upstate New York and steelhead trout and it's a beautiful farmed, clean fish and organic feed and everything. It's it's a beautiful fish. And we're always listening. Well, you know, we talk a lot about food on this broadcast and on air specifically, and we talk a lot about sustainable farming generally and kind of feeding the world.
What's and also about innovation within the food space. What's the innovation in your space or is it, you know, the way you gather it's very similar to how it was done ten years ago, twenty years ago, fifty years ago. And yeah, I think the innovation lies with how can us consumers are evolving in we feel busier. I don't know if we are, but we feel busier. Right. So, um, my particular business, we're focused on ready to ready to heat. So how can I design because the technology is there?
Restaurant five star quality meals that are flash frozen, twider to your door, stuff, put them in the oven. Twenty minutes later you're having this amazing meal and like a lobster risotto with the tarragon butter, you know, or sounds good, you know. We yeah, we put together at Topino and uh send everybody the ingredients and I had to do a little bit of work. But you know, we have a lot of home chefs now because of last year, so it's kind of neat being able to get more creative.
The demand is there. Well, it's interesting to what you said that how people have to kind of expand their palette and one of the things that's enabled people to kind of go in a completely different different places all of the plant based food and there's plant based shrimp. We're seeing it go into the seafood market as well. What do you think about that? Yeah, you know, it's funny you mentioned that because it's part of our expansion plant is to get into you know, more plant and land. Right.
We want to be able to serve anyone and everyone based upon their dietary preferences. Were even coming out with a new summer box that includes some vegan burgers. But as it relates to designing, you know, vegan shrimp and vegan tuna and even it's crazy stuff that's going in the labs where they're building a chicken breast from nothing. Um,
that one's peculiar to me. I don't know how people are going to feel about it, but plant based is a big thing, and we should be designing the flavors that people love so that they can feel like they're not missing out. Right, it's a big thing, and am I missing out if I become plant based? And um, it's kind of neat that people can engineer flavors, uh and textures for those people. So I'm all about it. Well,
I love to hear that. Um, we've just got about forty fifty seconds left here, what kind of summer do you think it's going to be when it comes to sales, when all of a said and done as quickly. Yeah, yeah, I'm confidence gonna be great. I'm excited that. Um, the local main businesses are going to be very very busy this summer, So that's exciting. UM And I know that people are gonna want me to ship them some lobsters, and you know, we love that. I think the catch
is going to increase. I think we're a couple. We're delayed by a couple of weeks and slowly but surely everything will kind of get back to normal. You know, the price may or may not change. Some people are telling me it's not going to change. Some people are saying, yeah, it's going to go down. So you know, we just kind of watch and we try to, you know, create value and be transparent. All right. Well, I gotta love love some of your boxes and your your combinations on
your website. Marks, so nice to talk with you. Have a good season. Mark Morral, founder and CEO of Get Main Lapster lop Stuff. That's what I said. Joining us from Portland, Maine,