When the Covid-19 pandemic struck, Theresa Nemetz, founder and president of Milwaukee Food & City Tours, knew she had to get creative to keep her business afloat.
“We had 100% loss of revenue,” Nemetz said. “And were scrambling to figure out how [to] pivot and stay open.”
That’s how Delicious Food Delivered was born. The delivery company initially began selling general gift boxes at the onset of the pandemic and later offered Wisconsin-centric Advent Calendars emphasizing products from local businesses that fall – a staple of the season four years later.
“We’re really proud of the fact that we are financially benefiting so many small business owners,” Nemetz said. “…We just see a real camaraderie with the vendors that are excited to be in the calendar and excited to promote their communities.”
Nemetz and her team were able to expand the types of calendars to states beyond Wisconsin in 2021, with the calendars’ popularity on an upwards trend ever since.
More than 20 different holiday gifts from across the country are featured in Delicious Food Delivered’s 2024 holiday season lineup, from neighboring Illinois to as far east as New England. The calendars are on sale through Sept. 10 and will be delivered between Nov. 13-25, regardless of the date purchased.
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
“The calendars allow us to tell the story of small business owners in these other cities,” Nemetz said.
Nemetz said the advent calendars typically feature anywhere from 10 to 12 different vendors and products, rotating “about 50%” of the boxes each year to keep the experience fresh for customers.
The calendars usually feature a range of products, including chocolates and candies, which Nemetz said are a “critical part” of the seasonal gifts.
Nemetz said this year she’s seeing a lot of repeat business and has even noticed a new trend amongst customers, thanks to the addition of a Hawaii advent calendar.
“We’re actually finding that a lot of people are buying one calendar for friends and family, and then they’re adding on the Hawaii box for themselves,” she said. “So maybe they can’t go on a trip to Hawaii this year, but this is a way to bring a little taste of Hawaii to their homes.”
The experience the calendars provide is one of the reasons they’re so popular, according to Nemetz, who said the original inspiration was allowing families to connect despite being separated by the pandemic.
“It’s this beautiful connector between generations,” she said. “And it doesn’t matter if you’re not with your family because you’re still able to experience this with them each day in the month of December.”
As Nemetz and her team work to keep connecting family members and small businesses across the nation, she has her eyes on a continued expansion of the beloved holiday gifts.
“We definitely are looking to expand to all 50 states within the next year and a half or two years,” Nemetz said. “So we will, if not in 2025, be nationwide by 2026.”
