With a new twist on an old standard, this culinary entrepreneur is building his brand one day at a time.

Everyone's busy these days, but Shane Hauck, whose fledgling company C4 Foods (Clean Cuisine & Classy Creation Foods) is preparing to introduce a new product, is really busy. The last year has seen Hauck launch his line of gourmet condiments, move his operation from a commissary kitchen in Cranston to Hope & Main in Warren, and take on a new job as a front-of-house manager at a high-volume Newport restaurant, right as the summer tourist season kicked off.

And in the middle of that, he took a break for an afternoon to collect his Bachelor of Science degree in food service entrepreneurship to go along with his Associate degree in culinary arts, both from Johnson & Wales University.

How does he keep up the pace? For one thing, he's young. Impressively young, given his success to date at a time when most college graduates are still reveling in their newfound freedom and dodging dreaded what-are-you-going-to-do-now questions. Hauck launched C4 Foods at the tender age of 20.

The Delaware native modestly credits everyone but himself for his accomplishments: a family with a love of home cooking, a high school with a great culinary arts program, Johnson & Wales, an internship in Italy, and a father who is a great cook as well as an attorney and an invaluable source of business advice.

His products include apple butter, made from a family recipe that he has traced back four generations. "We made it outside, in a copper kettle over an open flame," Hauck notes, but is quick to add that he has put his own twist on it. For one, since he takes pains to source only natural, fresh, and local ingredients, he uses a different (proprietary) blend of apples than his predecessors would have used in the Delaware region. One thing he didn't change: a family tradition of cooking apples in cider, not water ("It really boosts the flavor.")

He also makes a not-too-hot jalapeño ketchup, his own creation. "I wanted something different and unique that everyone would enjoy." Next off the line: a ghost pepper and pear jelly.

Since his move to Hope & Main in October, Hauck adds Warren's year-old

culinary business incubator to his credit list. "They (the people at Hope & Main) have helped with marketing, rebranding, everything," he says. "It's not jut a kitchen, they have all the tools you need to be a successful business owner."

Hauck references "baby steps" when talking about growing his business, admitting that he's "trying to put as much time as he can" into marketing efforts, particularly establishing relationships with larger retailers like the much-vaunted Whole Foods Markets. But there are only so many hours in a day and large-vendor distribution requires time and money: including waiting for the lengthy process of gaining approval for shelf stability and obtaining bar codes.

As Hauck continues to make the most of the time and money he does have to invest in his business, keep his "day" job, and refine his marketing plan, one thing he doesn't lose sight of his his mission to provide the highest quality product with every purchase, and “an explosion of flavor with every bite.”

Granted, time goes by slowly the younger you are, but if the strides C4 Foods has made in the last year are "baby steps," Hauck's baby is running away with it.

Locally, C4 products are available at Tom's Market and Blount's in Warren, Grapes and Grains in Barrington, and Kate & Company in Bristol. For more information, find C4 Foods on Facebook.