Amy Zitelman Hersch is a busy woman. Between raising three kids, serving as a board member at the Kaiserman JCC and running a business — Soom Foods — Zitelman Hersch, a member of Adath Israel in Merion Station, has a full schedule. We caught up with her to find out what her favorite parts of life as a young Jewish mother and business owner in Philadelphia are.
Where are you from, and what was your Jewish upbringing like?
I am from Rockville, Maryland, and went to the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School. Our parents’ level of observance increased throughout our lives; for instance, I distinctly remember changing my (public) Kindergarten pizza lunch order from pepperoni to cheese! Our father began observing Shabbat when I was in middle school or so, and they turned the house Kosher by my senior year of high school.
Are you more, less or the same level of observant that you were as a child? Why did you decide to continue that course, or change it?
I am less observant than I was when I was a child, but am still very committed to my and my family’s Jewish identity. For instance, I stopped keeping kosher when I started my business, and it was also the same time when I met my now husband, who also isn’t kosher. But we do Shabbat dinner and prayers every Friday night and go to synagogue, Adath Israel, every Saturday morning.
What is your favorite Jewish holiday and Jewish tradition?
My favorite Jewish holiday is Passover because it has always been a large and warm and fun family gathering! My favorite Jewish thing to do is be in Israel.
Were you always planning to go into the food business? Were you always planning to be an entrepreneur?
I am the youngest of three sisters. My middle sister, Jackie, moved to Israel in 2008 and started dating her husband Omri, who is in the tehina industry in Israel, in 2011. My oldest sister, Shelby, studied entrepreneurial management at Wharton and was inspired by Omri’s tehina business and wondered what the tehina (or tahini) category looked like in the USA. I studied interpersonal communication at University of Delaware and brought my interest in social psychology and behavioral science as a lens to start building out a business plan. Shelby was living and working in Philadelphia when we incorporated the business, and our business plan used Philly as our home base. I moved in with my aunt and uncle in Wynnewood in January of 2013 and we got our first import at the end of April. Our first big sale (we had a few friends buy, too!) was to Zahav on May 8, 2013.
What is something that most people would never guess about being in the tahini business?
Tahini is the fastest-growing subcategory of nut and seed butters in the USA! It’s growing faster than the likes of almond, cashew and blended butters. It wasn’t always this way, but the ingredient has come a long way! Soom tahini is now in 4,500 stores and growing.
How did you and your husband meet, and what does he do?
My husband, Darren Hersch, is from Queens, New York, and moved to Philly in 2007 to get into real estate with his brother. They own and manage about a dozen residential and mixed-use properties, mostly in Port Richmond. Now he is the vice president of real estate at Zitelman Partners, where he works with Shelby and our father, Rick Zitelman! We met at North Bowl, at the Wednesday night bowling league, Chutzbowl. Shelby’s husband, Dan Stamm, brought me to bowl when I first moved to the area. Darren bought a case of Soom off of me after our second date.
How old are your children? What are they like?
Henry is 6, Jesse (we call him Juice) is 3 and Miles is 2! They are very rambunctious, fun and sweet. Henry is in first grade at Perelman and the littles are at Adath Israel.
What do you enjoy doing together as a family when you aren’t at work or in school?
We go to a lot of playgrounds! And children’s museums, and the occasional nature trail. We also watch a good amount of TV and chill and play at home!
What is your favorite part about living in Philadelphia?
It’s a great place for my friends to visit with their kids!
