Exploring Life & Business with Tiffany Balk of Blueberry Haven

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tiffany Balk

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
In 2007, my husband, Steve, and I were driving home from a vacation—though in those days, “vacation” meant accompanying our boys to hockey camp while we explored the surrounding area. This time, we were in Northern Ontario, staying at a cottage on a lake owned by the parents of an NHL player who hosted the camp. They were incredibly gracious, welcoming us, our five-year-old son, who was too young to attend the camp, and our six-month-old puppy.

As we drove home through the blueberry-filled landscape, Steve suggested sending our hosts a gift from a cherry-themed company in Northern Michigan. Looking out the window, I reflected on watching that founder grow his cherry business since 1989. He had started with just a T-shirt and a cookie, selling from the back of his car. He and my sister had been camp counselors in Glen Arbor, where my family spent summers.

I thought about my retail background—starting in the Gantos management training program, working my way up to assistant manager, then associate buyer, and finally becoming a dress buyer before stepping away from my career to raise our children. As I glanced into the backseat at our three boys and our youngest, Cayce, who would soon start kindergarten, I wondered: What am I going to do all day?

A friend from my Gantos days had taught me how to make jam, and at that moment, inspiration struck. I turned to Steve and said, “We need Blueberry Haven.”

That summer, I scoured farmers’ markets and realized very few blueberry products were available. By Christmas 2007, I had secured my first retail store in downtown Holland to carry my products, and Blueberry Haven was officially up and running. I worked with a co-packer in downtown Grand Haven to produce my initial line. By the summer of 2008, I spent every Wednesday and Saturday selling Blueberry Haven products at the Grand Haven Farmers’ Market. Over the next few years, I expanded into more retail stores and participated in holiday bazaars across the Midwest.

In 2010, while having lunch at my co-packer’s café, I noticed the old Chronicle building across the street was for sale. I immediately envisioned a brick-and-mortar store for Blueberry Haven. I convinced Steve it was the perfect location. His only warning? You’ll have to go to work every day if you do this.

After a year of renovations, Blueberry Haven officially opened its doors on November 11, 2011.

As the business grew, I collaborated with new partners and expanded our product line. I met Justin Raha at the farmers’ market, where he had a booth near mine. He suggested making chocolates and baked goods for Blueberry Haven, beginning a great partnership. Another invaluable addition was Pam Thornley, whom I hired as an employee. She became a trusted and loyal confidante, and through her, I met her son, Jeremy Paquin, a talented restaurateur from the area. Jeremy eventually became a co-packer for even more of our products.

Tourists flocked to our store in the summer months, and locals chose our blueberry products as gifts, spreading a little piece of Grand Haven to friends and family. As our children grew up and moved on—one to college in Upstate New York, another playing junior hockey in Canada before heading to college in Boston, and our youngest choosing a school out west in Montana—our blueberries traveled with them.

As Steve and I began discussing retirement, we wondered what the future held for Blueberry Haven. That’s when I turned to Justin and Jeremy for ideas. Jeremy, ready to step away from the fast-paced restaurant industry, partnered with Justin, and together, they hatched a plan. In February 2024, the three of us formed a partnership, with me maintaining 51% ownership while they learned the ins and outs of running the retail business. Over time, they will fully take over Blueberry Haven, bringing fresh ideas and expanding our product offerings while preserving the values that have always defined us—sharing a taste of our quaint beach town and its locally grown bounty.

Blueberry Haven employs and supports local businesses, farmers, and artisans today. The future is bright, and we invite you to stop by for samples and all things blueberry. Whether you’re looking for a treat for yourself or the perfect gift, we guarantee you’ll find something unique at Blueberry Haven.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The biggest challenge in the first few years was being a working mom of three active boys. I had only one other employee, a high school girl who came when she left classes so I could be home to shuttle the boys to all their events. After a couple of years of working all the time, my next-door neighbor showed up one Friday morning, declaring she now worked on Fridays until 2:00 p.m. because she knew I hadn’t had a haircut in two years.
Also, during the first few years, I taught the community about taking a gift from home. On my first day open, an elected official walked into my store and said, “You think you’re going to make it selling some jellies?”
In the later years, it was summer employment for many high school students, some with a work ethic and some without. I taught them to treat customers as if they were people who had just entered their homes and welcome them if they were visiting their house.
As the business grew, I never had an employee with the manager title, as I wanted everyone to be on the same playing field. No job in the store wasn’t every employee’s job, which worked well until I needed to travel more with my boys as their sports took us out of town. It worked out great until 2020 with COVID-19 and discovering the ‘manager’ at that time had been embezzling, most likely for years.
It took a few years to recover from that incident, leading us to where we are today with my new partners.

As you know, we’re big fans of Blueberry Haven. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Blueberry Haven sells various blueberry-related products, including food, housewares, and clothing. All our offerings are locally grown and sourced, showcasing the talents of individuals throughout West Michigan. While we do not own a farm, we partner with local farmers to obtain our blueberries.

Currently, we operate a single store in Grand Haven. However, our products are also available for purchase online or by calling our store, and we have successfully shipped items across the United States and even to a few foreign countries.

I take great pride in having built my brand from the ground up, and it’s gratifying when our local customers visit our store to find the perfect gift. Many of them tell us that our products are the best and easiest gift to give.

Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
I learned retail fundamentals from a great company that began years ago in West Michigan—the women’s clothing store Gantos. My journey started when I was hired through a college campus interview and placed in their management training program. I trained at a store outside of Boston before moving to upstate New York, where I helped open a new store as an assistant manager in the Albany area.

From there, I joined the buyer training program at Gantos’ corporate offices in Grand Rapids. After completing the program, I became an assistant buyer in accessories and was later promoted to dress buyer, a role I held for several years. During that time, I gained valuable experience in product sourcing and development.

I often say I’m a product of the Gantos School of Retail—it was an invaluable foundation, and I now enjoy passing on that knowledge to my new partners.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.blueberry-haven.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blueberryhaven
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Blueberryhaven07