I love writing about small business success stories.
I love even more writing about small businesses here in my state of Georgia that have had sustained success for man years, and that will continue in to the future.
Mrs. Griffin's BBQ has been brewed and bottled in Macon since 1935. The have a new website at mrsgriffinsbbq.com and a great tasting BBQ sauce.
Check out the website for the inspiring story about Mrs Griffin's and the company history. There is also an e-commerce section and recipes to enhance your own BBQ.
So far, Mrs Griffin's success has been local and regional. You can find it on the shelves of Kroger, Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, Food Lion, Ingles, Harvey’s and other fine grocers, from just south of Atlanta down to Florida.
But Mrs. Griffin's new owner, Roland Neel, has bigger plans.
Neel is pushing to expand the brand to canvas more of the Southeast, and he is also using his other business, Private Label Products, to let stores and shops to put their own labels on this great sauce.
Customers love what Mrs. Griffin's has to offer, including one woman who was shopping at Sam's in Albany, GA and was introducing people to Mrs. Griffin's through a tasting.
"Me and my family have been eating Mrs Griffin's since the '50s when my uncle use to put it on the goat that he use to raise and eat. If ya' cut me I'd bleed out Mrs. Griffin's."
That's the South.
Because of Neel, the sauce is popping up in places such as a 40-store chain in Arizona and the Western Frontier Store in Alberta, Canada. In Alaska, it carries the “Three Bears” label.
Neel, 49, who bought Mrs. Griffin’s in January, said the sauce’s Georgia buyers are “some of the most loyal customers in the world.”
With a little more promotion, the company and sauce will be known in many more places.
At last estimate, Mrs. Griffin's ships out 15,000 to 20,000 of its 12-ounce bottles and 10,000 to 12,000 of its 32-ounce bottles of sauce every five to six weeks.
They also ship bigger 5-gallon units to commercial establishments and restaurants.
Many of Mrs. Griffin's employees have been around for many years.
That to me is the sign of success.
Mrs Griffin's is a company to watch in 2013 and beyond.
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