Wrap'd Tight: Fresh Wraps for Lunch or Late Night

Business:

Location: 316 S. New St.

Owner: Heather Griffiths

Contact Info: 610-866-0316

What's special/unique about your business?

“Every day, I go to a farmers’ market and buy fresh produce to put in my salads and wraps,” Griffiths said. She visits either or the to get the ingredients she will use that day. She is looking forward to the Bethlehem Farmers Market at Campus Square, which will open this year on May 10 and be open every Thursday through the summer. Wrap’d Tight will be selling some of its signature items there.

What's your most popular product?

The most popular items on the menu are the turkey bacon cheddar wrap; the chicken spinach feta wrap; and the “all or nothing” baked potato, a baked potato with the works.

How have you weathered the recession?

Griffiths said she tries to do things to promote the business, including using social media (they have a Facebook page); distributing fliers in the neighborhood and hosting special events, like open mike nights (the shop is located in the space formerly occupied by the Wildflower Café, which also hosted performances.) Every Friday, Wrap’d Tight has its “Midnight Run,” opening the shop from 1 a.m. to 3 a.m. to serve the late-night SouthSide bar-hopping crowd looking for a bite to eat.

What’s your favorite story or anecdote about your business?

Griffiths tells a story about how one customer found her business as an alternative to the SouthSide during a “Midnight Run,” while the shop was located in its former location on Broadway, across the street from the fast food empire. While the McDonald’s is open 24 hours, it closes its dining room during late night hours, forcing walk-up patrons to wait in line outside for service. On one cold night, with a “Wrap’d Tight” flier in his hand, one young man walked away from the line to find the eatery promoting its late night Friday hours right across the street, Griffiths said. He got warm, was served a fresh wrap and walked out while some of his friends were still waiting in line outside the McDonald’s. He and many of his friends have been customers ever since, Griffiths said.

Tell us about your history.

Griffiths said she always dreamed of opening a restaurant where patrons could eat something healthy without being “tempted by a burger or a steak.” While still toying with different ideas while working her job in the medical records department at , Griffiths bought a bunch of ingredients, made a bunch of wraps, put them in a basket and handed them out to co-workers. A few weeks later, a co-worker approached her to make her another wrap for lunch – and handed her a $5 bill to do it. The idea for the restaurant was born. Wrap’d Tight has been open continuously since 2010, first on Broadway, but relocated to 316 S. New St. – the former Wildflower Café – a month ago. While trying to build her business, Griffiths maintains her job at St. Luke’s where she currently works as a laboratory aid.