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Using heirloom kernels is a commonality across the brand but theres something else thats vital to Pipsnacks: family.
Jen Martin:Yes.
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It turned out to be the best popcorn Id ever triedand it didnt hurt my stomach at all.
Jeff loved it just as much as I did and was like, We should sell this.
It was this lightbulb moment.
Jen:Moving apartments wasnt the first time Jeff has helped me, too.
In college, I had a juice business.
I made juices and would deliver them around Chicago.
We had a student make our logo.
We started by selling [the product] in little brown paper bags at the farmers market.
But we were literally popping popcorn in our moms spaghetti pot and sifting it in a frying basket.
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It was not official popcorn-making equipment by any stretch of the imagination.
Then one day, we were at the farmers market selling popcorn and it was really hot.
There was a woman walking around and we offered her some shade and a place to cool down.
She ended up being a scout for Oprahs Favorite Things.
The business really took off from there.
Soon after that, we went onShark Tank.
Jeff:We were really a bootstrapped operation untilShark Tank, but we made it work.
Our thought process at the time was to say yes to opportunities and to just figure it out later.
We could really start making a lot more products after that.
Well+Good: Pipsnacks is truly a family business.
Youre siblings and, Jeff, your wife is the third co-founder.
Do you think that being family makes business easier or tricker?
Jen:Jeff and I have always been really good friends and liked hanging out together.
That pushes me to work even harder.
Jeff:I feel the same way.
Our whole family is involved.
Well+Good: What did you guys snack on growing up?
Jeff:I actually had a popcorn stand in my room as a kid.
I also had a restaurant.
We called it Jeff & Andys Diner.
People would order food, like sandwiches, and wed charge them 25 cents or 50 cents.
One day Jen ran out of change and she was hungry so she went crying to our mom.
Then we had to do it for free.
But other than that, we had CapriSuns and fruit snacks.
Jen had a lot of food allergies so we had healthy snacks, like apples and peanut butter.
Thats why we focus on heirloom [corn] so much.
The nutritional profile has been preserved more.
Heirloom crops have never been touched in a lab or hybridized.
Birds, bees, and bugs are a natural part of the process and there are no chemicals.
That leads to a more nutrient-dense product.
Were educating ourselves every day on things like soil health.
One of our long-term goals is to be 100 percentregenerative organicbecause its better for both people and the environment.
Well+Good: Are you working on anything else that youre excited about?
How do we make changes that lead to more representation?
Part of that is sharing information and creating a professional web connection that is collaborative.
The learning curve to break into this business is so steep.
They may be our direct competitors on the shelves, but behind the scenes were banding together.
Its not about competition; its about making a long-term positive impact.
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