Wine Chips Inc. aims to put the couture in potato chips with its fast-growing line of specialty snacks in flavors such as smoked Gouda and Asiago.
The Huntington Beach-based company launched in early 2019, relying on Facebook and Instagram to build an audience. Around the same time it also participated in the LA Winefest in Long Beach, which generated a long line and more demand than they could keep up with.
That was followed by a raft of inquiries long after the event from specialty stores, wineries and other retailers. The business officially launched at wholesale around April 2019, and in 2020, the company’s first full year in business, online sales totaled $1 million with the digital channel making up the bulk, driven by Facebook, Instagram and Google.
Initially, social media posts focused on lifestyle imagery as the company learned from its growing follower base.
“We made sure we interacted with everyone that liked or commented to learn as much as possible about our audience and our customers,” said founder and CEO Jonathan Strietzel. “It was very small at first, but the insights we got from our early fans were invaluable.”
Strietzel, whose background is in technology, said starting on social allowed greater control to create what he hopes to be a “timeless brand” and successful revenue stream through subscriptions.
The CEO went on to say media buying through Facebook and Google helped target the right audiences.
“These are great platforms for experimentation and market education,” he said. “You not only get to interact with customers socially through these platforms, but you get to use the learnings to better understand them and make your products better tailored for them.”
Wine Chips now has about a dozen stores reaching out daily since the holidays to carry the chips. The line ($19.99 for a starter kit and $79.99 for the four-flavor collection) is in more than 650 stores, most of which were added in the second half of 2020.
