FRANK Hederman is a self-taught craftsman and businessman who has become world-renowned for his smoked salmon.
His childhood, spent largely on the water in Cork’s vast natural harbour, may have informed and inspired his decision to smoke fish: local boats landing the wild Atlantic salmon catches, men salting and barrelling herring for export on the camber, the seawater literally ‘boiling’ with mackerel chasing spratt in season were all familiar sights. Frank was also building long lasting relationships with the men of the harbour and estuary who would later supply his fish.
People loved his fish from the start, and his reputation spread quickly – helped by local luminary Dr Myrtle Allen, Cork City’s vibrant food culture and Frank’s single–minded desire to create a delicious and iconic Irish food.
Smoking fish is his primary skill and interest. However, Frank was one of the producer pioneers of the farmers’ markets in Ireland travelling weekly to Cork, Dublin, and even County Down to create a market for his Cork-made produce in Midleton, Cornmarket, Temple bar, Dun Laoghaire, Lara … to name but a few.
He has had a presence in the English Market for the best part of 20 years and Hederman’s has become the place to buy smoked salmon, if you know and love good food. All the products are Irish, and smoked in house by Frank himself.
Frank was the first trader to refurbish his pitch since the 2008 recession and the beautiful boutique shop immediately won architectural awards, based on its unique style, which reflects the heritage and architecture of the market and the city. It has sparked a flurry of upgrades throughout the English Market.
A steady stream of international food journalists, photographers, chefs and would–be smokers have made the pilgrimage to see Frank’s very special smoke house and his shop. Without exception visitors return home with the sense of having seen and tasted the real thing and experienced authentic Irish food.
Hederman employs 10 people and it is very much a family business with Frank’s wife Caroline acting as General Manager, and Frank’s children ‘cutting their teeth’ at the market. Caroline has a background in food writing and brand management for artisan food businesses, and is also a passionate cook. She is involved with recipe development in their smoke house kitchen which was developed specifically to provide delicious homemade food for their English Market shop.
Frank Hederman has one of only a handful of authentic timber smoke houses worldwide. Their product is a luxury food brand – They take great pride in design, packaging, shop fit out, and their social media presence. They had the foresight to commission master penman Seb Lester to create the beautiful decorative ‘H’ which adorns their brand mark – long before he became famous for his work for the Apple IPad Pro.
In 2017 Hederman was the only Irish brand to be chosen as a brand partner by Rolls-Royce to celebrate the Diamond Anniversary of their famous member’s club. Hederman smoked salmon was centre-stage on the menu at the launch in Kensington Palace and selected as a gift for VIP guests.
Over the years Hederman has travelled abroad with Cork City Council to promote the city. They have represented Cork by catering for the British Ambassador to Ireland several years running and they have participated fully in events such as Cork’s hugely successful Long Table Dinner, and on Culture Night.
Frank told Business Cork: “I set out to smoke fish. I’ve done everything else too, but really my skill and true passion is simply to make the very best Irish food that we can all be proud of.
“Cork punches so far outside its weight in terms of food culture in terms of production of food – not just trading food – to that that end I focus on making the finest smoked salmon at the smoke house. I am also very hands on in the English Market, visiting everyday and I employ the very best staff to represent me there. It seems to be a winning formula.”
