The Tucson couple whose homemade salsa has been featured at the three area Costco stores since 2015 landed a coveted shelf spot at nine Costcos statewide for their newest product, handmade chorizo.
Chilttepica chorizo was expected to land on Costco cold shelves Thursday, May 31, at five warehouse stores in the Phoenix area, the three in Tucson and the Costco in Prescott, said Gloria Badilla, who owns Chilttepica with her husband Huemac.
The three Tucson Costcos βΒ 6255 E. Grant Road on the east side, 1650 E. Tucson Marketplace Blvd. on the south side and 3901 W. Costco Drive in Marana βΒ have been carrying Chilttepica salsa since early 2015. The salsa also is available at La Estrella Bakery's two locations (Mercado San Agustin at 120 S. Avenida Del Convento and 5266 S. 12th Ave.), where the bakery owner first planted the seed with the Badillas to start making chorizo.
βMy husband grew up in a meat market so after school he was in charge of the chorizo," Badilla said.
But the thought of adding chorizo into the salsa and spice mix of Chilttepica was a tall order. They had to secure a whole different set of permits to go from salsa to chorizo, Badilla said.
Badilla said they have been selling the chorizo to La Estrella for about a year. Costco gave them the green light for nine stores statewide, a move that Badilla said was pretty extraordinary; for most smaller cottage industries, Costco allows them to "road show" the product βΒ offer samples and sell it from a display inside the store for a limited time, like a three-day weekend or a week.
Chilttepico Chorizo skipped that step and went straight to the shelf.Β
βThey gave us a space on their shelf," Badilla said.
Chilttepica Chorizo, made of both beef and pork, is expected on Costco shelves Thursday, May 31. It's free of preservatives and nitrates and Badilla said a pound-and-a-half package will sell for $6.59.
To learn more, visit chilttepica.com
