Tehachapi News

Spotlight on Local Business: Nancy Davis's Samba Foods

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Culinary entrepreneur Nancy Davis of Bear Valley Springs has cooked up a unique and healthy recipe for gourmet success: Carefully blend one part science, add a generous portion of the freshest ingredients — including an abundance of  creative energy and marketing skill — and the result is the award-winning Samba Salsa.

Davis's all-natural gourmet salsa contains no chemical preservatives and it is marketed at more than 70 Albertsons Supermarkets around the San Joaquin Valley in mild, medium and hot varieties.  Davis's salsa has danced away from regional and national competitions with top honors.

“I have a passion for cooking and healthy eating,” said Davis. “This began as more of a hobby for me. I got tired of looking at labels containing ingredients I can't even pronounce.”

Davis, who holds degrees in chemistry and biology, has earned nods from Fortune Magazine for her patent on a chemical for sealing roadways. She said her scientific training inspired her in her food marketing enterprise.

“I used my background to apply my knowledge of inorganic chemicals to create a healthy, organic product. I used the food's natural chemicals to preserve it,” she said, describing the natural preservatives derived from peppers, olive oil and citrus.

Samba Salsa is not just a condiment for tortilla chips.     

“I want Samba Salsa to be a staple in your grocery cart: Eggs, milk, butter - and Samba Salsa,” she said.

Davis began making her salsa as gifts several years ago, to show her gratitude for her chemical company clients. In no time, the demand for her homemade, flavorful gifts grew. And grew. Soon, her client's wives were calling to request more for their friends and families.

She said it was then that it dawned on her, “I thought, why not sell this to other businesses for corporate gift giving?”

Demonstrating culinary skills that  complement her well-grounded business skills, Davis' newest gastronomical creation changes tempo from tantalizing savory flavors to an elegant and sensuous waltz of flavors that is certain to bedazzle even the sweetest of cravings. Ophelia's Gourmet Classics English Toffee is more than worthy of the sophisticated packaging that cordially invites you to indulge.

“In this busy world, we all deserve to be pampered now and then,” Davis greets each recipient with an inspirational welcome tucked thoughtfully inside each box. 

“Ophelia's Gourmet Classics feed your spirit and soothe your soul.”

Ophelia's gourmet English Toffees are available in a variety of sizes and decadent flavors, including holiday gift boxes that will impress and are likely become cherished keepsakes.  

(Note to Santa: Don't forget Mrs. Claus!)

Davis believes that her inspiration to create and market new, quality products is rooted in her multi-cultural upbringing.

“My parents escaped from India. It was very political,” she said describing the hostile climate following her father's retirement from the Indian Air Force.

Following a three-month journey by ship to England, the family ultimately relocated to Montreal, where as a young girl she was exposed to a new culture — a culture to which she credits much of her holiday spirit. Davis recalls vivid images of Christmas displays featuring decadent treasure chests overflowing with gourmet candies — much like the varieties she would one day successfully package and market. But that road to success was long and arduous for Davis and her family.   

“I saw my parents turn it around. I was taught not to be afraid to work, to get my hands dirty,” she said.

Uprooted once again at the age of 12, the family moved to Lancaster, where her father pursued an aerospace career while her mother continued nursing, a skill she acquired in India at the age of 15.

“Academics were very important in my family,” she said, “In kindergarten I knew how to divide eight digits in my head.”

Responsibility also was imparted, as she was often sent to pay bills, do the shopping, and run errands for the family, riding her bicycle all over Lancaster.
While her parents may have emphasized the philosophy of academics and hard work, Davis surmised quickly that in business, “if you spread out too thin, you're an expert at nothing.”

Self-employment was always her first choice.

“I think I was an entrepreneur from an early age,” She said, recalling how as a young “latchkey kid,” she collected seashells and sold them to neighbors so she could buy candy.

“I blew $8 at the candy store. I can always find something to sell,” she said, “I even sold all the contents of my family home when we moved to California.” 

Incorporating that natural business acumen into a spiritual lifestyle has provided her with the key to a peaceful and productive life at work — and at home.

“I'm sometimes surprised how diverse I am,” she said self-consciously as she described her multiple careers and talents, including real estate sales, world travel, and her ability to speak two and understand a third language all while nurturing her two nearly-adult children.

“I just have so much excess energy,” nonchalantly said the woman who gets up at 4 a.m. to exercise, eats right and always finds something positive in every thing she does.

“You manifest what you perceive. If you have a 'can do' attitude, you manifest that.”