New Deli Sells Tastes of Polish Heritage

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

BOARDMAN, Ohio – Marta Mazur lived in the Mahoning Valley for four years before deciding to open her own Polish delicatessen.

Mazur, a native of Gdynia, Poland, moved to the United States in 1981 and previously lived on the East Coast, where there are "tons of little ethnic stores, especially the Polish delis, and I missed that when I moved to the Youngstown area," she said. Mazur now lives, appropriately enough, in Poland, the Valley suburb -- and after driving long distances to purchase authentic Polish products, she decided to open her own deli.

Krakus Polish Deli & Bakery opened in September, and word-of-mouth is brining people into the Market Street store, just north of Route 224. "It's wonderful. People are talking about it and there is a little buzz going on," she said. The store celebrated its opening Tuesday with a ribbon-cutting event presented by the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber.

The deli features cold cuts, kielbasas, kiszkas, bacons and other items flown in weekly from Chicago, as well as grocery items that can’t be found on store shelves here, Mazur said. “There’s always something that you can find in here that’s new and exciting,” she said.

Transporting product to her store is the main challenge she faces, she explained. Her closest competitors are in Cleveland and Pittsburgh. “So everything’s about a 60-mile drive from here. To get fresh, you can’t get any better than this unless you have a smokehouse in your backyard and you can do it yourself,” she said.

When deciding to launch the venture, Mazur sought assistance from the area chapter of SCORE, formerly known as the Service Corps of Retired Executives.

"She was very well organized in what she wanted to do. She knew exactly how she was going to pursue it," said Frank Bordonaro, a counselor with the local SCORE chapter. "She had done a lot of research."

Mazur knew her market and the competition she faced, including area churches that sell pierogi. "But she exhibited a lot of passion for this business and a lot of confidence," he continued. That confidence, coupled with her organizational skills, led the SCORE counselors to believe she would be successful.

"This really is very well merchandised," maximizing the small amount of space, he added.

"My Score team was a wonderful help," Mazur said.

Among those attending Tuesday's ceremonial ribbon cutting was Thomas Presby, manager of business development for the Regional Chamber. His maternal and paternal grandparents came from Poland, his parents were both Polish and he grew up in a Polish environment. Having the new store here "makes me feel connected to my Polish heritage," he said.

Many of the deli's customers are people who are "rediscovering" their Polish roots, Mazur said.

"There is a resurgence of Polish and Slavik pride in the area in recent years with the emergence of Polish Youngstown and Simply Slavic," she remarked. Many of these people now acknowledging or rediscovering their heritage want to see what products are offered from those counties. "They're coming in to try to see what's here and what their culture is all about," she said.