When I founded Blue Pacific in 1993, I had the vision to be the best Natural Fruit Flavor company. I always wanted to focus on authentic flavor profiles of real fruits. It was this passion that led me to form our foundational team and our humble beginnings in Santa Monica, CA in 1993. Only one question remained: What will be our company name? I knew I didn’t want to simply name it the “Acme” flavor house. I felt the company needed an identity and soul that aligned with my passion and aspirations. I wanted a name that would emotionally connect to people through a sense of place and memory.
I wanted a name that would emotionally connect to people through a sense of place and memory.
Donald Wilkes
When I moved to Southern California from New York in 1983, I quickly embraced the West Coast lifestyle but kept my East Coast jazz roots. I fell in love with the warm, sunny beaches and wide blue sky, and knew I wanted a name that captured the essence of these surroundings.
One day, I cued up the jazz vocal song “Blue Pacific” by Michael Franks. As the lyrics drew me in (“Here by the blue Pacific / where the diamond water shimmers in the sun …”) the stars aligned. In that moment, Blue Pacific Flavors was born. The melody and lyrics of the song perfectly expressed my aspirations for a company with an expansive horizon and limitless creative opportunities.
The melody and lyrics of the song [Blue Pacific] perfectly expressed my aspirations for a company with an expansive horizon and limitless creative opportunities.
Donald Wilkes
“Blue Pacific” is a metaphor and a musical link between my roots and my chosen home – the cool jazz clubs of New York City and the sun-drenched beaches of Santa Monica, where Blue Pacific Flavors got its start. Franks’ smooth vocals transport me back to my early years in NYC and the beginning of my flavor career, when I learned the trade at my father’s flavor company. It also captures my personal passion for collecting mid-century Hawaiian memorabilia which represents the Aloha spirit, a sense of welcoming and warmth that has always been central to how Blue Pacific does business.
Whenever I listen to the song that inspired our name, I am filled with the same comfort, passion and inspiration I felt the first time I experienced the sun setting over the Pacific Ocean. Blue Pacific is a nod to where we do business – but it’s also the bridge between our company heritage and our shared future.