Listen
Live!

#207 JP Davies, Fishy Tales from Key City Fish

(Airdate: September 6, 2022) Maryanne interviews John Paul Davies, owner of Key City Fish. He started as a teen fishing in Alaska. When he was at the University of Washington he had a part-time job at a fish store. By the time he moved to Port Townsend in the early 1990s, John Paul (or JP) was ready to open a retail operation for New Day Fisheries. But selling from an outside tent wasn’t that profitable in winter. JP was laid off but saw it as an opportunity to start his own business: Key City Fish. Flash forward to today: Key City is now a local institution with both retail and wholesale operations. Most restaurants and specialty stores on the Peninsula stock Key City fish and meat. The Covid crisis actually strengthened retail sales as more of us became home chefs. But Covid hurt, of course. Most restaurants closed for a while. John Paul laid off staff but, with the aid of government programs, carried on. Now Key City is back on track with JP going strong and a vibrant younger generation in the wings.