For Kenneth Rogers, getting into the food service industry was mostly about gaining independence and entering a new world of entrepreneurship.

Rogers, who often goes by “Kenny,” said he and a business partner started Rain City Catering around 1999.

“I just didn’t want to work for nobody no more,” Rogers admitted.

Since its founding, Rain City Catering has provided food prep services to Seafair and professional baseball players in the Mariner’s locker rooms — they are even responsible for cooking Mariners-legend Ichiro Suzuki’s favorite chicken wings, which Rogers said he regularly ate as a game-time ritual.

The Rain City Catering brand grew into a trusted business and a reputable brand over several decades, and eventually, there was an opportunity for Rogers to expand what they were able to do.

During the pandemic, which disrupted the catering business for Rain City Catering when events and gatherings became limited under new circumstances, Rogers said the company began to offer vacuum-sealed food that they would prepare and then sell to customers who only needed to reheat the food when needed.

Rogers said the company offered a variety of pre-prepared meals that included ribs, pasta, fajitas and other dishes sealed in a vacuum bag ready to be reheated at the customers’ convenience, and he said this model worked well during the pandemic.

Rogers said a local Renton landlord had expressed interest in giving Rogers and Rain City Catering a brick-and-mortar location for the company to permanently offer their community-beloved foods, but for a while, Rogers was reluctant to jump on the opportunity.

It was not until the pandemic restrictions began to sunset that Rogers saw the opportunity to open what is now Rain City Market in downtown Renton. Rogers said both he and the landlord for the market recognized the void that Rain City Market could fill in by providing a bodega-like deli and market for locals to pop in, get a bite to eat and maybe even pick up some groceries.

To set up the deli, Rogers said he had to procure some refurbished kitchen equipment and even an ice cream machine, which serves the rare and famous Dole pineapple-flavored soft serve ice cream.

Rogers, who grew up in Seattle’s Rainier Beach neighborhood, recalled a younger version of himself who, as a kid, would ride his bicycle down the street to buy a soft-serve ice cream on a hot summer day. That experience and idea of a place in the community for folks to gather and treat themselves is exactly what Rogers looked to create with Rain City Market.

“And my machine won’t be broken,” he joked about the ice cream.

Community is at the center of what Rain City Market is about. With a diverse menu of deli options, a handful of recipes, like the chopped cheese sandwich, were suggestions taken directly from community members. Rogers said he decided to include New York’s famous deconstructed cheeseburger on a hoagie roll was requested by a construction worker that popped their head in to inquire about the sandwich and whether it would be included on the menu.

The market side of the business offers basic grocery goods such as toiletries, as well as local craft beers and other locally crafted goods. Rogers said the market started offering books from local BIPOC authors, which have been successful sellers at Rain City Market.

“Some people are coming here just to buy the books,” he said.

Rogers said since it opened, he has been at Rain City Market every day, and his personality and sense of humor have become a part of the market’s character. For example, when customers buy toilet paper from the marker Kenny has set it up so their receipt will show a slightly crude, and all for fun, description of their item as part of the transaction.

It is the little things that make Rain City Market what it is. The small details, the excellent music in the store and the friendly employees working behind the counter — and Rogers is getting the sense that the community is welcoming it with open arms.

Rogers said he hopes Rain City Market will continue to grow to be a cornerstone for the community, one that the community can take ownership and pride in.

“It all came together,” Rogers said of the journey. “It’s bigger than me now.”