“I’ve been growing oysters since I was 25,” Barb Scully said when asked about her decision to sell her Scully Sea Products business to Ryan Jolie and Andy Rogers who also own Jolie Rogers Traveling Raw Bar.

Scully, a true pioneer in oyster aquaculture, founded Glidden Point Oysters in 1987 and operated the business until she sold it in 2016. She started Scully Sea Products after selling Gidden Point and the business was sold to Jolie and Rogers this past January.

“The timing was right,” she said when asked about her decision to retire. “They were helping me and interested in what I did. It became apparent that the most logical thing to do would be to transition the business to them.”

Rogers and Jolie’s interest in oysters and aquaculture is far more than casual. The two operate Jolie Rogers Traveling Raw Bar, which they created in 2019. They met while working at a seafood restaurant. Jolie holds a degree in culinary arts from Johnson & Wales and Rogers earned a degree in ecogastronomy and hospitality management from the University of New Hampshire.

“I had been working in kitchens for 20 years and wanted to transition out of the lifestyle, to have a way to incorporate my experience and knowledge into a business,” Jolie explained.

Rogers brought his knowledge in ecogastronomy and experience (including a year in Italy and France.)

His UNH studies included the “study of food systems within a sustainable framework,” he explained, and he “found his way” to oysters, wanting to start a catering business. The two joked about their names being perfect for the kind of business they wanted to start. “Our skills are complimentary,” he added.

Jolie Rogers was created to cater weddings, corporate events and private parties. Rogers and Jolie also occasionally offered their raw bar as a pop up at breweries. The hunt for “the best oysters” for their raw bar brought them to Barbara Scully’s business. She became their supplier and as time went on, they became more involved in the aquaculture.

Last summer, the businesses announced that they would be working together from Scully’s Edgecomb store.

“We have just shy of 2800 square feet,” Rogers said. “They are boutique oysters and we’re growing fewer and pay more attention to them.” Scully’s new owners put in 50,000 “seeds” – small oysters – at the end of 2021 which won’t be ready for three years.

Jolie points out that “Scully Sea Products will carry oysters from local farmers. We also want to expand (our inventory) to other watersheds in Maine so people can experience the variety and other flavor profiles.” He added that there are a number of factors that create different flavors of oysters: location in the river, sun exposure and how they are grown.

Rogers and Jolie plan to open to the public starting in April for seven days per week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. They will offer steamers, little neck clams, lobster and oysters. The Jolie Rogers business, which is a separate entity, is creating sauces which will also be sold at the Edgecomb location and will continue to provide catering.

Scully explained, “We worked together last year and I’ll be there as a mentor in whatever capacity they need. I’ll still be around.”

Jolie hopes to expand the aquaculture aspects of the business and said, “We have a lot to learn.” Rogers added, “We want to stay true to what Barb has built. The community loves this place and we want to run it well, the way it has been.”

Jolie Rogers Traveling Raw Bar can be reached at (508) 250-7598.

Scully’s Sea Products can be reached at 633-3599.

This article has been updated since its original posting.