And it’s crazy.”įollow on Instagram to see pictures of Chipper himself (and sometimes Close). Nearby grocery stores include Piggly Wiggly and. “We’re trying to do both at the same time. Popular points of interest near 2749 Otranto Rd include Neighborhood Tap House, K C Mulligans, and Starbucks. “I feel like there are people that make careers out of the Charleston market and people that make careers out of wholesaling,” he said. He had spent so much time getting into grocery stores that there wasn’t much time to set up a booth in the local market. Starting in August of 2021, Close added a booth at the Charleston City Market and Night Market to his growing list of locations for Chipper Dog. The team gave him the name of Lowes buyer, and by 2022, Chipper Dog was in all 15 Lowes Foods in South Carolina. At the festival, he simply asked Lowes team members about carrying Chipper Dog. Chipper Dog didn’t win, but that didn’t stop Close from making a connection. The winner would earn a one year Lowes shelf contract. Chipper Dog participated in the Lowes-sponsored Pinehurst Barbecue Festivals Sauce Showdown competition last Labor Day. In just under two years, Chipper Dog BBQ Sauce was carried in over 100 grocery stores.Ĭlose next landed a deal with Lowes grocery stores. Lee Flowers in Lake City, S.C., which not only owns and operates 50 IGA and KJ grocery stores in Georgia and the Carolinas, but warehouses that distribute food to them.Ĭlose then worked out an arrangement with Perfect 10 Distribution, distributors of popular southern and Lowcountry brands like King of Pops, Red Clay Hot Sauce and Marsh Hen Mill, by applying on the website. To land a deal with independent IGA stores, Close contacted W. If I just cold call and stop in, about a 30% chance.”Ĭhipper Dog eventually found itself in 30 Piggly Wiggly stores across South Carolina. If I did that and talked to them beforehand, then stopped in and showed them the product, it was about a 90% chance I was gonna get in. “I just went to every one of them,” he said. With phone numbers, names and addresses in hand, he pounded the pavement. The next stop was the Piggly Wiggly on Otranto Drive in North Charleston, where he met the district manager of Lowcountry Grocers, owner of 15 Piggly Wiggly locations across South Carolina.įrom that chance meeting, Close received contacts for around 34 stores across the state. ![]() ![]() The first location to carry Chipper Dog BBQ was the Piggly Wiggly on Skylark Drive in West Ashley. If your product is good, he said, it’s far easier to convince a Piggly Wiggly owner or manager to carry your product as opposed to big corporations like Publix or Kroger. By that September, with the product in hand, he hit the ground running.Ĭlose started with the 40-plus Piggly Wigglys in South Carolina - all of which are independently owned. “I always said, everything we’re going to do, we’re going to do it professionally, and I don’t care if it costs me more money,” he said.īy July, 2020 Close had locked in a co-packer who could bottle his sauce and left Timbers.
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