Envision Alumni Edition Fall 2018

Chris Crist '17 has a Taste for Entrepreneurship

By Brad Stager

When Chris Crist graduated in May 2017 with a bachelor's degree in computer science and good prospects for a career as a software developer, he was already the chief executive officer, or chief executive chef, of his own business.

CC's Gourmet Products, purveyor of "small batched, handcrafted gourmet salsa," according to the company web site, is a blend of Southwestern cuisine and Crist's entrepreneurial persistence. He says his salsa products, such as Extreme Heat and Fire Roasted Jalapeno, reflect the flavors he enjoys.

"I grew up in New Mexico, where I learned to make salsa. I enjoy cooking, and would always make salsa at home versus buying it in the store."

From that casual kitchen experience and favorable responses from people who had a chance to eat the salsa, Crist's business started to take shape while he was attending USF.

chris crist

Chris Crist

"I didn't really plan to make a salsa company," he says. "I saw a lot of bars that have craft beer and didn't have an option for food. I brought some in to one of my local bars, and everyone liked it."

When Crist realized the commercial potential of the salsa, he started building his company, and began an education in entrepreneurship with resources available at the university, such as the USF Student Innovation Incubator (SII), located at Research Park on the Tampa campus.

SII, a USF Research and Innovation initiative, helps students turn their ideas into businesses by providing office space, access to technology and guidance from mentors who come from the local business community. Crist says the incubator's resources were helpful as he was getting his business off the ground.

"They focus on students who have entrepreneurial goals. It's a place where students can collaborate and work together and try to develop something while they're going to school. It's a great program and I used it a lot."

There may not be obviously transferable knowledge between computer science and gourmet condiments, but Crist says his formal education at the College of Engineering has yielded benefits to the business.

"Engineering problem solving, looking at a problem and finding a solution, goes back to even before I started a business." In this case, the problem Crist directed his attention to was that many craft beer establishment owners lamented a lack of appropriate food selections to offer their customers.

"After talking to a few brewery owners about the lack of quality snack foods, in snackable sizes, I decided to start CC's Gourmet Products; here's a problem I can solve by doing it this way."

Crist combines fresh ingredients and spices to create gourmet salsas and craft beer quesos. They are packaged without preservatives as individual servings in smaller jars, which Crist says are ideal for socializing.

"I wanted to make the packaging smaller than what you would get in a grocery store, so that one or two people can sit down and enjoy a snack."

The smaller jars also minimize the chances of the salsa aging in a forgotten corner of your refrigerator.

cc salsa

Among the places you can find CC's Salsa are craft beer breweries and brew pubs in the Tampa Bay area, such as Stilt House Brewery, 3 Daughters Brewing, Caledonia Brewing, Cueni Brewing Co., and Barley Mow Brewing Company, among many others. You can also find Crist's salsa products on the shelves of Wild Fields Marketplace stores.

Crist says his salsas are becoming popular and he is looking at hiring sales representatives and marketing professionals to help out as his company grows.

That assistance will come in handy, because he is putting his computer science degree to good use developing software for CACI International, Inc. which provides information services to the United States government. Crist, who served in the U.S. Navy for five years, says he was hired immediately after his graduation because he interned at CACI.
While Crist is devoting his time and energy toward two distinct professional endeavors, he says they are both deserving of his best efforts.

"I'm at a pretty good company, so I'm focusing my efforts on software development and career growth. I have a side business that gives me more options and I think I can develop it, but I don't think I need to choose one path or the other right now."

Learn more about CC's Salsa.