By Donald Ring, Icon intern
Tastefully Simple is a direct sales company that prides itself on providing an array of delicious, easy to make food products to their customers. And that's exactly what Amy Roby, an independent consultant for Tastefully Simple, hopes to bring to the Bluffton community.

Roby, who has worked alongside with the brand since November, decided to invest in a career with Tastefully Simple after she and her husband moved into their home in Bluffton and decided to host a party sponsored by the company.

Roby ended up loving the experience and decided to pursue a career with Tastefully Simple. As a consultant, she is able to try all the new products herself and raved about how delicious the cinnamon muffins were.

Out of all her responsibilities as a consultant, Roby says with enthusiasm that she really enjoys the hosting aspect because it enables her to "get to know more about the people in the community "and to become reacquainted with old friends.

Tastefully Simple usually focuses on selling a variety of food mixes for breads, cakes, muffins and soups but this past month Roby says that Tastefully Simple now offers a slew of other options for the summer season.

Some of these include: grilling sauces like honey apple and pomegranate chipotle, dips like the corn, black bean salsa, "giddyup" guacamole and "sweet jalape~no" dip and marinades/dressings like the citrus marinade and the "tangy ginger" dressing.

For summer drinks, Tastefully Simple is offering a multitude of drink buckets such as "sunny strawberry" margarita, "samba sangria slush" and "electric" lemonade slush. While these new summer products sound and look enticing, Roby says that all the classic bread, cake and soup mixes including "savory wheat beer bread', apple cake, potato cheddar soup are still available.

As a consultant for Tastefully Simple, Roby makes the products available to potential customers in a variety of ways. One way includes taste-testing parties, where Roby gives the hostess a "party kit" and the guests are able to taste a variety of the products from the entire catalog so they can decide what products they really enjoyed.

Other ways include hosting Tastefully Simple themed book parties and showcasing at expos, festivals and fundraisers, though Roby says that "only one consultant from Tastefully Simple is allowed per event" and that it is her responsibility to rsvp to an event to ensure that no other consultants are present.

When an orders placed, Roby says that all products are guaranteed to arrive within 10 business days although "typically it a lot sooner that that" stating that she has ordered something on a Monday and it arrived on Friday.

To learn more about Tastefully Simple's products, contact Amy Roby at Tastefullysimple.com/web/ARoby or 419-349-4196.

Donald Ring, a BHS grad, is a student at Bowling Green State University. In a summer internship he works with The Bluffton Icon and Bluffton Area Chamber of Commerce.