Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Thirkill.
Hi Ashley, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My husband is the entrepreneur of the family. He has always wanted us to start our own business together. There was one idea that always stood out to him, starting a kettle corn business. His aunt and uncle, who live in Mallad, Idaho, have been running a kettle corn business for the past few years. They knew how much Chris wanted to get into the business. They called us one day saying that their daughter was selling her enclosed trailer and all her kettle corn equipment with it. It felt like this was a sign that now was the time to make that dream he’d always had come to life. We bought the trailer and all the equipment. We renovated the trailer to be something we could be proud of. We were joking around one day about what to name the business. Me, being the corky person that I am, said something silly like, “Once you pippity pop, you won’t stop!” And that’s exactly what we did! We became Pippity Pop and we haven’t stopped poppin’ since we started this adventure! Our slogan is Fundraisers, Cravings, and Events. We want to be at all your events, helping with all your fundraisers and in the hands of every person sitting at home enjoying a family movie together! We want to build a brand that represents how food can bring people together for all of life’s best moments.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The biggest struggle was actually becoming a legitimate business. Utah has some strong laws with the Department of Agriculture and Food. Chris’s aunt and uncle didn’t have to jump through nearly as many hoops in Idaho as we did to get the green light to make and sell our kettle corn. We had to go that extra mile to get everything in place. It was a labor of love. We are officially a business with the State of Utah and the Department of Agriculture.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Pippity Pop?
Chris and I have always wanted to start a business together that got us away from the 9-5. We wanted something we could make into a family business. Chris had always talked about his aunt and uncle in Idaho that had their own kettle corn business. When they called us, telling us their daughter was selling all of her kettle corn equipment and trailer, we felt this was that door opening for us to really give that dream a shot. Chris’s aunt and uncle have been a very big part in our success. They took us under their wings and showed us the ways of the business. They invited us out to their home several times to teach us all we needed to know to be successful. We still have weekly calls with them. It has honestly brought us so much closer to them than we probably ever would have. It’s fun to know we’re really getting that family business aspect we’ve always wanted. What we want Pippity Pop to represent is how food can bring people together for some of life’s greatest events. We want to make every party or event unique with our custom-ordered flavors. We want to help schools, sports and religious denominations raise money by utilizing Pippity Pop for their fundraising events. We want to build, not just a kettle corn company, but a brand that represents making moments more fun and exciting.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
The start of every business is a risk. If you want to be successful, you have to be willing to put yourself out there and even fail a little bit along the way. What matters is what you do with the knowledge you gain from those failures.
Contact Info:
- Website: pippitypop.kettlecorn.com
- Instagram: pippitypop.kettle
- Facebook: pippitypop.kettlecorn
Image Credits
Picture of me and Chris credit to Lindsey Jean Photography.
Logo credit to Finding Foley.
