Staffing Ruston butcher shop ‘next to impossible,’ family says. Will new owners help?

A butcher shop older than the state of Washington has, for now anyway, given up on its expansion efforts.

Owens Meats, established 1887 in Cle Elum, opened its second-ever location at the public market near Point Ruston in 2020. In February, the Owens family sold the business to the Kunitsa family, which owns what is now called the Waterfront Market, “teaching them the family secrets of what keeps a small meat market running for five generations,” they wrote on social media.

The rebranded store is now called High Steaks Meat and Deli.

Doug and Don Owens, who took over from their father Ray Owens Sr. in the late 1980s, worked with the Kunitsas over a couple of months before officially letting go last month.

The Owens family was “hoping to thrive as the exclusive meat market” at Point Ruston — and as one of only a few such specialty stores in the South Sound. Their attempt was stymied by timing and other complications, some outside their control.

The meat counter’s debut was delayed as the pandemic hit and construction screeched to a halt; it opened nonetheless as the first anchor tenant that summer, surrounded in part by scaffolding. Following a lawsuit between the contractor and the Point Ruston developer, the public market split from its neighbor and rebranded in 2021.

The Owens, meanwhile, found themselves far from their own homes and families as they struggled to staff the Ruston outpost.

By phone, Madysen Owens, who now manages the customer-facing side of the family trade, agreed that all of the above factors played a role, but she emphasized that labor was the one they could not win.

“The biggest problem that led to us closing: It was next to impossible to get long-term employees over there,” she said. “Honestly, I called over 30 people that had applied, and one of them called me back — and then no-showed. We would hire somebody, they would show up for the interview or their first day, and completely ghost us and we would never hear from them again.”

They did have one employee who worked with them for almost two years, she said, but the lack of consistent staffing meant she, her dad, aunt and uncle would take turns staying overnight in Tacoma. Leading up to the sale, they were paying a long-term Cle Elum staffer to commute 101 miles.

Much of their staff at the original shop has worked there for several years, with a few reaching past 20.

She said they offered competitive wages and perks for tenure, including an all-expenses-paid cruise after five years. Despite offering training, she added, it felt like workers were more willing to bounce around jobs here than they’ve experienced in a small town like Cle Elum.

Owens Meats was one of only two anchor tenants still standing at the Ruston market, now owned and operated by Paul Kunitsa and his family’s Serpanok Construction, which sued the Point Ruston developer for lack of payment. He did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the decision to purchase the butcher shop.

Dancing Goats Coffee left at the end of 2021 and Only Oat Cookies closed in 2022. The owner of the latter conceded that light weekday traffic hurt her bottom line, but weekends were generally busy, and she appreciated the opportunity to share customers in a joint space. Taco Street remains open. Zaya Cafe, which serves Ukrainian baked goods and snacks, replaced the coffee shop, and a boba shop with croffles recently took over the cookie stall.

Asked if they felt hampered by the ongoing legal entanglements at Point Ruston, Madysen Owens said the location wasn’t necessarily to blame.

When the market changed hands, it struggled with tenant turnover and attracting new vendors, she admitted, “but I think it was on the ups,” she said. “We really gave it our best effort. I don’t regret it … We’ve been in business since 1887; it was one of those things that’s like, if it works out, great, if not that’s OK. We’re not going anywhere over here.”

Regulars of the shop at the Waterfront Market will recognize the goods at High Steaks Meat, including ample cuts of steak, chicken and pork, as well as housemade carnivorous treats like bacon, sausage, jerky and smoked salmon. The popular “meat candy” snack mix is also available but in limited quantities — arrive early on weekends for best selection.

HIGH STEAKS MEAT & DELI

▪ 5101 Yacht Club Road, Ruston, 253-212-1617, waterfrontmarketatruston.com/vendors/high-steak-meat-deli

▪ Daily 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

This story was originally published March 19, 2024 at 12:51 PM.