Spore Store grows and sells table and health mushrooms, and products are sold both online and at the Medina Farmers Market.
MEDINA, Ohio — Meet Leland Gordon, owner of The Spore Store. He is hard at work bagging substrate for crops.
You see, Leland grows mushrooms.
“It’s mainly lion’s mane, cordyceps, oyster mushrooms, things of that nature,” he says.
Gordon’s love of fungi began at a young age.
“I grew up mostly hunting mushrooms, including morels, with my father and grandfather,” he says.
And after abandoning his career as a chef, he immersed himself in the world of mushrooms and turned his passion into agribusiness.
“Being a chef, I couldn’t find many fresh mushrooms,” he explained. “For me, I felt it was important to have fresh mushrooms available and to get them to the public.”
These fungi aren’t just for the table. They have a lot of health benefits. Leland produces mushroom extracts, develops caffeine-free mushroom coffee, and soon develops mushroom gummies.
“I really feel that part of my job is to educate the public,” he said. “People often ask me about recipes. My background as a chef is very helpful, but mostly I explain everything. They want to know about mushrooms.”
This mushroom artisan has found his niche and is happy to take care of his crops from spore to storage.
“You have to be friendly, you have to be nice and you have to have a good time.”
You could say that Leland is truly an “interesting person.” You can find his products online at his thesporestore.company.site, on Facebook, or in person at his Farmers’ Market in Medina starting May 1st. His mushrooms will also be sold at Boutros Brothers Produce in Cleveland’s West Side Market.
