From the Islands to the Highlands
Written by Angelina Gurrola
Charles Nembard of Charley King’s Jamaican Sauces Reflects on Service to Community and Embracing Endless Gratitude
content sponsored by GreyBeard Realty
courtesy Charley King’s Jamaican Sauces
Charles Nembhard, affectionately known as Charley, grew up in the mountains of Jamaica, gathering wild herbs and fruit from trees. He was a natural-born cook, experimenting with the native flavors of the island to develop tastes that met his personal standards. He laughs warmly as he recalls, “I was a very picky eater when I was a kid. I’m actually still a picky eater.” His family and friends recognized his talent early on and encouraged him to become a chef, but Charley dismissed this idea, insisting that he only “wanted something to eat.”
It wasn’t until his late teen years that he realized that maybe they were right and that perhaps this talent was worth pursuing professionally. He says of the years that followed, “I had to learn to hone my skills, learn how to construct a recipe, how to follow a recipe. I just kept developing myself until I finally created my first sauce.” It was this sauce, the Jerk Sauce Mild, that laid the foundation for the store he now runs from the WNC Farmers Market, Charley King’s Jamaican Sauces, and would charm and delight customers for years to come.
When Charley was 19, he made an ambitious move and immigrated to the United States, settling into an entirely new culture and adjusting to the colder weather in Black Mountain. He set up a food tent and began to make his sauces for the community, an authentic taste of Jamaica that could not be found anywhere else nearby. Word of mouth spread quickly; Charley remembers, “People started coming to see me and eat, and it just started getting bigger and bigger until it was just too big.” 
To keep up with his growing popularity, Charley took the advice of his new community members to bottle his sauces and distribute them more formally. He pursued the necessary certifications to get his sauces in grocery stores, online marketplaces such as Amazon, and farmers markets, officially founding his business in April of 2013. The reception from people was immediate, Charley says: “If someone buys something and goes home and uses it, they love it to a level that they email me to say, ‘Man, this thing is awesome. I want this thing in my life forever.’ And they’d introduce it to their friends and their family members, and it would just keep growing.”
“I hold so much of my success and gratitude to my customers. These people hold me up so high.”
Now, in addition to its presence in grocery stores and online vendors, the Charley King’s Jamaican Sauces store is set up at the WNC Farmers Market in Asheville, a year-round, daily market hosting dozens of vendors. Charley interacts with the people who visit the market on a daily basis, expressing his gratitude for those who resonate with his cooking and his message: “I hold so much of my success and gratitude to my customers. These people hold me up so high.” It seems almost difficult for Charley to take any amount of personal credit for the success he’s found, stressing rather that the support of the community itself is wholly responsible for the growth he has experienced. He says with sincerity, “If I live a thousand lifetimes, I couldn’t thank them enough.”
It is precisely this deep emotional connection to his customers and community that motivates Charley to continuously provide, even as his business has been strained during COVID-19. “I’ve lost a lot of money,” he observes. “It takes money to do things, and I have to be careful not to overextend myself.” Looking ahead, he’s thinking about how he can meaningfully move his business forward and be of service to the world. He states his long-term goals: “I want to be a household name. I want to make as much money as I can, and I want to give back as much money as I can. Not just to Asheville, and not just to Jamaica, but wherever needs it. I don’t want to be gifted, I want to give to people.”
The inherent love for humanity that Charley emanates not only through the sauces he makes but how he interacts with his community is a poignant reminder of the ways in which entrepreneurs can connect to their greater purpose: “It makes me happier to give to people than to receive from people—to see the look on their face when they really appreciate what you’re giving them. There’s a certain satisfaction I get from that, that no amount of money could ever replace.”
