#BOOM CHICKA POP HOW TO#

Our friends, family, and the larger community in Minnesota were incredibly supportive, and we couldn’t have done it without them. We hired a lot of our friends and their kids who were going to college and needed summer jobs.

Dan’s brother became our CFO and his dad helped us deliver to local stores early in the business. We had a group of friends and family weigh in anonymously on Survey Monkey as one of our first consumer insight groups. We had friends that bought our products, gave us honest feedback, and helped us taste test. My parents even helped us pop popcorn at a couple of events in the very beginning. I think we learned, grew, and I’m very proud of what we were able to create together, and in the end, the balanced approach created great value in our company.ī+C: Tell us about how your family and friends help support your business.ĪB: Grandparents jumped in and helped pick up our kids from school and spent time with them when the business started getting crazy. AngieS Boomchickapop Sweet And Salty Kettle Corn Is A Crispy, Crunchy Snack Made From Whole Grains And Simple Ingredients. As our company grew, we didn’t know how bigger food companies did things, so we needed to learn about everything from logistics to production. Last year, Conagra Brands acquired Angie’s Artisan Treats, LLC, the larger company that makes Boomchickapop, for $250 million.ī+C: What has been challenging for you as an entrepreneur?ĪB: The challenge for me is finding the balance between trusting my instincts as a leader and innovator while learning and listening to industry experts.

By 2004, Angie’s Boomchickapop was in grocery stores and has been expanding nationally ever since. They started popping popcorn in their garage and selling it at local street fairs, neighborhood events, and they got their big break selling their kettle corn outside of the Minnesota Vikings stadium in 2002. At the time, Dan was a Spanish teacher and Angie worked as a nurse practitioner, and they wanted a fun activity that they could do with their kids and sell to set money aside for their children’s college fund. In 2001, Angie Bastian and her husband Dan made a startling realization that they didn’t have a college fund set aside for their then-toddler-aged kids.

#BOOM CHICKA POP HOW TO#

Isupen this week’s How to Quit Your Day Job series, we chat with Angie Bastian, the co-founder of Angie’s Boomchickapop, about how she turned a homemade snack into a booming brand with unique flavors like dark chocolate drizzled sea salt kettle corn (want!) and chile lime popcorn that have earned loyal fans nationwide. Women-led food businesses have popping up everywhere like Sprinkles cupcakes, Health-Ade kombucha, and Loving Cup frozen yogurt shops - which means that if you have a passion for a culinary niche, you might want to think about a career in the food industry.

Boom chicka pop