Skip Bennett

Skip Bennett

Owner


Island Creek Oysters

Duxbury, MA USA


The more speed bumps that you hit and you either pivot or figure out a way to get past those speed bumps makes you more resilient. You have a degree of tenacity where you can weather storms.

Videos

By Roadtrip Nation

Skip Bennett

Milestones

My road in life has been direct.
I spent a lot of my time as a kid out in Duxbury Bay off the coast of Massachusetts because my father was a lobsterman.
Throughout high school and college I would fish in the bay for shellfish but I didn’t think that was something I wanted to do for a career because the shellfish population was unpredictable.
Inspired by some people who were growing clams in Wellfleet, Massachusetts, I decided to try growing my own clams in Duxbury because that would give me more control over my yields.
After five years of experimenting growing clams, my product was wiped out by a parasite and I decided it was time to start thinking about making a career for myself.
I heard about people growing oysters in Maine and decided to try that—I wasn’t sure if it would work because there were no wild oysters in Duxbury Bay but it turned out that they grew and tasted good!
I funded my work with oysters through the wild harvest and sale of mussels and horseshoe crabs until I had enough of an oyster harvest to do that full time.
We currently operate as Island Creek Oysters, a vertically integrated farm out of Duxbury, Massachusetts.
Our oysters are the house oyster at restaurants in both California and New York, and have even been served at White House state dinners!

Education

High School
Bachelor
Finance
Merrimack College

Career

Owner

I own a vertically integrated oyster farm.

Career Roadmap

Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Environment & Nature
Food
Accomplishing Goals

Advice for Getting Started

Here's the first step for high school students

Pursuing an aquaculture degree in college is the most direct path into this industry. However, if you don't have an aquaculture degree, I recommend reaching out to different farms and hatcheries to inquire about any opportunities that could work for you. It's often difficult for farms like ours to post hiring forms and get people out here, so reaching out yourself is a great option.

Recommended Education

My career is not related to what I studied. I'd recommend this path instead:

undergrad
Bachelor
Aquaculture

Interviewed By

Skill Shift

Skill Shift

Skills and training to help you find your place in the future of work