Our Story
Start Up
Greg Linton and Andy Drewer started Shore Seafood in 1981 in the quaint town of Saxis, Virginia. Located on the tip of the Chesapeake Bay, they know they had an opportunity with direct access to soft shell crabs. They began building a customer base, making contact with potential customers on routes into Ocean City, MD and the Philadelphia, PA seafood market. Following a positive reception after presenting fresh soft crabs, the business immediately found itself with multiple wholesale customers in both regions and hired its first packing crew. In the early 80's, while Andy was working to secure an operating facility, Greg worked out of the spare bedroom of his home storing product in chest coolers and freezers. He started leaving his house in the early morning hours making runs into the Philadelphia market as well as deliveries to the company's Ocean City customers. Greg's wife handled the bookkeeping and also helped deliver orders after purchasing their first refrigerated truck.
Growth
In 1985, as the business grew, Shore Seafood was offered a seafood facility to rent and would utilize its new space to process soft crabs during the summer months and clams during the winter. As the business grew, Andy's father, H.V. Drewer, offered the company a large waterfront estate and Shore Seafood purchased the property in the late 90's. Twenty times larger than its predecessor, this new space allowed the company to begin increasing sales even further. The company participated for the first time in the annual Seafood Expo North America trade show, hosted in Boston, MA. This is where the business began promoting its soft shell crabs under the Chesapeake Bay Delights brand which has become a trusted name associated with soft shell crabs ever since. Not only did these shows offer large exposure, but they also promoted strong customer relationships, that still exist today and were instrumental to company's growth and long-term endurance. The company continues to participate in this show every year.
Expansion
In the mid 2000's, the soft shell crab industry saw a significant drop in supply and, as a result, forced the company to quickly diversify and explore other opportunities. This is when the business began growing and harvesting oysters. After adding the Grand Pearl oyster product line, the company also began adding more clam products under the Chilantic label such as chopped clams, clam strips, and a concentrated clam juice, in addition to the clams on the half shell already established. With these new product lines, Shore Seafood has now grown to a dedicated staff of nearly 50 employees when operating at maximum capacity during busy summer months. Today, the company continues to grow in the seafood industry and is still led by its original owners more than forty years later.