HILLSDALE — When life gave Gian Marco Heilmann lemons, he made Meyer lemon rosemary jam.
The Swiss filmmaker said an unexpected divorce forced him to look inward. Guided by what he describes as a “gut feeling,” he ultimately purchased the small-batch jam company Les Collines and set out on an entirely new career path.
Now Heilmann is working to rebrand and expand the business while preserving its local roots and commitment to organic, minimally processed ingredients.
“When I walked in here for the first time, I knew this would be my next thing,” Heilmann said of HGS Home and Chef in Hillsdale, a teaching kitchen located in a historic 1870s house where Les Collines products are produced.
With virtually no experience in food preparation, the opportunity to purchase a well-established jam and jelly company didn’t make sense on paper. But he went with his instinct.
“I took the courage and went against the stream,” he said.
Gian Marco Heilman pipes fresh jam into jars.Photo by Aly Morrissey
Born and raised in Zurich, Heilmann spent years working in media production, a career that took him to Munich, Stockholm, Budapest and Kazakhstan. At one point, Heilmann logged 120 travel days in a single year – an experience he described as both exciting and tiring.
The creative side of filmmaking drew him in, eventually leading him to pursue a master’s degree in fine arts and directing in Los Angeles.
“My goal was to learn the Hollywood way of filmmaking and bring that back to Switzerland because that would make me a rather unique player in the market,” Heilmann said.
He eventually returned to the United States after meeting and falling in love with his now ex-wife, helping open an upscale retail business in Millerton. When the marriage later ended, he said the experience forced him to reassess his life.
“It was really tough for me, but I got on my own journey of cleaning up my mental and emotional world, and that has been fantastic,” Heilmann said.
Looking for a new direction, he explored several possible ventures before stumbling upon the opportunity to purchase Les Collines from previous owner Brigid Dorsey.
Once he committed, Heilmann didn’t waste any time. He worked closely with Dorsey in the kitchen for around four months, learning the art and science of making jam, jelly and marmalade. He hired a business coach with experience in packaged goods and began refining the production process through trial and error.
One of his most memorable lessons came early on.
“I forgot to taste the batch,” Heilmann said, smiling as he remembered an entire batch of Meyer lemon rosemary jam.
He woke up at 3 a.m. with the realization and rushed to check the batch the next day. It wasn’t sweet enough. Nearly fifty jars of jam had to be thrown away.
The mistake, however, became an important turning point.
For Heilmann, premium quality is nonnegotiable. Today, every batch is carefully measured using pH and Brix testing to ensure consistent flavor and sugar levels.
“If we don’t hit the target, it’s garbage,” he said.
Authenticity is equally important to him.
“I want to educate customers that organic, unprocessed food can taste great too,” Heilmann said.
A batch of Les Collines jam.Photo by Aly Morrissey
As the company grows, Heilmann said maintaining that philosophy will remain central to the brand.
His first employee shares a similar story of unexpected change.
Emily Redmond joined Les Collines as a production manager after losing her job at the North East Community Center’s Early Learning Program (ELP) in November 2025, just prior to its abrupt, permanent closure.
In her role as Director of the ELP, Redmond had earned a commercial kitchen handling certification – a credential she never expected to use again.
Now she oversees jam production and has quickly mastered the process.
The connection between the two came through Heilmann’s children, who attended the ELP. When he needed someone to help manage production, Redmond immediately came to mind.
“My criteria for hiring are very simple,” Heilmann said. “I need someone with a good attitude who is willing to learn.” Redmond, he said, ticks both those boxes and then some.
Just like Heilmann, Redmond said she never imagined working for a jam company.
“I was throwing it out into the universe that something was going to come up and be the thing I needed when I needed it,” she said. “Life brings you where you need to be sometimes.”
Looking ahead, Heilmann hopes to first establish Les Collines as a strong standalone brand, then eventually grow an overarching premium food company centered on leadership, innovation and authenticity.
“Back in the day, preserving was a necessity,” Heilmann said. “Now we want to make it into an art form.”
Les Collines products are available online at
lescollines.shop, at local general stores and at farmers markets throughout the region, with hopes to soon expand into grocery stores.
Photo by Cassidy Howard
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An aerial view of the damage in downtown Salisbury, where a tree was uprooted in front of the Scoville Library.
No tornado, but strongest warning came too late for Northwest Corner
On Saturday evening, the weather took an abrupt turn just after 7 p.m. as hurricane-force winds whipped through the region, with Salisbury and Falls Village in the direct line of the storm before it moved southeast toward Harwinton and Torrington.
The storms forced last-minute cancellations of fireworks and laser light shows in the area and created hazardous travel conditions with hail, heavy rain and strong winds. Emergency crews responded throughout the evening to blocked roads and downed wires.
Residents referred to the scene as “apocalyptic.”
While many believed a tornado was responsible for the extreme damage, meteorologists said there was no evidence to support those claims. Samantha Lankowicz, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Albany, said the most likely cause of the damage was strong winds.
“We looked over the radar and we didn’t see anything that would suggest there was a tornado – there were no strong signs of rotation,” Lankowicz said, adding that their radar did pick up strong, straight-line winds up to 60 and 70 miles per hour.
Although thunderstorms were predicted, most residents were not notified about the severity until shortly before the storm struck.
Meteorologist Jack Drake, who covers western Connecticut, said the storm was warned as “severe” about 30 minutes before it reached Salisbury, but it was not upgraded to a “considerable damage” warning until after it had already passed through Falls Village. He attributed the delay in part to limited radar coverage in Litchfield County, making it more difficult to assess the storm’s intensity.
Drake described the storm as a “classic discrete supercell” and one of the strongest to hit the region in recent years, estimating wind gusts may have exceeded 80 mph. He said highly localized summer storms remain difficult to forecast.
Crews work on a barely-visible road in Salisbury with trees on wires and the pavement covered with debris.Photo by James H. Clark
Towns declare local states of emergency
The Town of Canaan (Falls Village) declared a local State of Emergency Sunday morning as a result of the storm damage. First Selectman David Barger said the move could help relieve the financial burden of the storm if state or federal funds become available.
On Sunday afternoon, Salisbury, Cornwall, Goshen, Harwinton and Torrington followed suit, each declaring a local State of Emergency.
“We want to be able to utilize all of our resources,” Barger said, adding that town crews have been called in for overtime hours to support the clean-up.
He said he received calls from North Canaan and Kent town officials who offered their support.
“Whether it be with the volunteer fire departments or the department of public works, they stand ready to help us,” he said. “The towns in Region One have really been drawn together with some common problems and common initiatives, and this is one of those things where we’re all working together.”
No injuries reported
As of early Sunday afternoon, state police at Troop B in North Canaan had not received reports of any injuries from the storms.
Sharon Hospital lost power for a short period of time Saturday night but the emergency generators kicked on and services were not interrupted, hospital supervisor Elizabeth Barrows said.
While Barrows could not confirm whether the storm resulted in any injuries, she said the hospital saw a number of visits from patients who were unable to use their portable oxygen concentrators as a result of power loss.
More than 70,000 Eversource customers in Connecticut were without power Sunday morning after the storm. That number dropped to just under 24,000 on Monday, July 6.
Progress was slow in the Northwest Corner. In Salisbury, 93% of customers remained without power as of 1 p.m. Sunday, with 2,792 of 3,006 customers affected. By Monday morning, 80% of Salisbury customers were still without power.
Resident Ben Blackwell directs traffic in Salisbury as motorists navigate road closures. Photo by Patrick L. Sullivan
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