Lib’s Market from Salem, Ohio plans to open a franchise business – Full City Roastery – on Market Street in East Palestine with brand new building with EPCIC
LiB’s Market is a specialty coffee, pastry, brunch, and local vendor market located in downtown Salem, Ohio, owned by Ben and Lindsay Ratner. As long-time East Palestine residents, the Ratners are now expanding their business to their hometown in partnership with the East Palestine Community Improvement Corporation (EPCIC), developing a new building on Market Street where the former PNC Bank drive-thru once stood.
Full City Roastery will operate as a specialty coffee roastery with both and online pickup window and a welcoming cafe space. The new location will introduce larger-scale roasting capabilities and a more convenient, everday coffee experience.
Why the different names for business? Ben Ratner clarified, with the name Full City, this creates a bridge between the modern, scalable coffee shop and the small town, artisanal, historic shop the own in Salem. With Full City Roastery, the Ratners will be able to scale the business to more locations and be the catalyst towards the future of where East Palestine is heading, while keeping their legacy at LiB’s Market.
Meet the Owners – The Ratner Family
Ben and Lindsay Ratner combined their passions for baking and wine-focused dining to launch Small Batch LLC in 2014, opening their first shop in 2015. Lindsay brought her culinary certification to the table, while Ben added his winemaking background from Kent State University to curate and grow the business.
What began as intimate, in-home catering and private events, quickly expanded. With the support from a small business loan through Mahoning Valley Partners, they purchased Friends Roastery in 2015, setting up shop inside Salem’s historic Thomas Greiner Bank building. LiB’s in Salem is not only a combination of Lindsay and Ben’s names, but also for their children- Lilly, Isabelle, Brodie and Simon. Their goal in expanding into East Palestine is to promote community through coffee and be the “rising tide that raises all ships”.
“My personal favorite coffee is the naturally processed Ethiopian coffee. It’s a fruiter blend over traditional Brazilian flavors, which have a nutty flavor. It’s a great way to explore nontraditional coffee flavors”. -Ben Ratner, Owner.