Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb knew he had an engagement in Lafayette to help celebrate another expansion by Subaru. However, he was looking for somewhere else to go before he made it to Lafayette. What better place to stop than Shoup’s Country Foods — a place the Governor said he has never been to before.
“I’ve been wanting to get out and about,” said Holcomb. “We’ve been kind of pinned down in the Statehouse for months on end. I had on my list to go an Indiana Grown business and try to do that. We knew we were going to make our way up to Lafayette for Subaru’s expansion. This was close and we said ‘we gotta get there.'”
Thursday afternoon was the designated time for Holcomb and his entourage to visit what he called “the perfect pit stop and a delightful lunch.”
“It doesn’t get any better than that,” said Holcomb of his visit. “It’s like a little bit of Heaven on Earth. It’s inspiring to meet families that innovate and evolve their way through the good times, but also the tough times regardless if its 2008, 2009 or the last four months.”
For Shoup’s Vice President Any Shoup Mennen and her staff, this was a very special event.
“It’s pretty exciting for us to be selected as one of the businesses for his stops,” said Mennen. “He’s going to Subaru next, which is a huge place compared to what we have. But it’s pretty special that he cares enough about the small guys to come and visit as well as the big companies.”
Mennen said the visit was kind of a “last minute thing.”
“They called us a few days ago to see if were available and that they have kind of wanted to come here,” said Mennen. “This is one of their site visits they just started again. They are trying to visit Indiana businesses and Indiana Grown companies to see how we’re doing in all the chaos.”
Holcomb made news on Wednesday when he said that masks will become mandated on Monday statewide. He was asked what he plans to do next.
“We’re looking at holding at 4.5 until the numbers start to tick back down,” said Holcomb. “We’re moving in the wrong direction in a couple of key categories. I want small businesses, family businesses and large businesses through the state not to have to shut down again.
“I just don’t want us to go back like other states are doing now,” he continued. “It’s a key couple of weeks ahead of us. I think the partnership with our local communities and the state making sure everyone has resources, we can not just stay open but more businesses can stay open and our kids can get back to school.”
Mennen added Shoup’s fed over 90,000 people in 2019.