Dansons

What Dansons does

Dansons is a multi-brand outdoor cooking equipment company founded in 1999 by Dan Thiessen and his sons, originally to convert sawmill waste into a reliable energy source. Over two decades the business evolved from horse and animal bedding into high-quality pellet fuel and a portfolio of pellet grills, gas grills, smokers, and electric grills sold under five distinct consumer brands: Pit Boss Grills (the fastest-growing brand in the grilling industry), Louisiana Grills (premium upscale designs), Char-Broil (value-oriented traditional grills), Oklahoma Joe's (competition-grade smokers and grills with over 35 years of heritage), and Current Backyard (all-electric modern solutions). The company's core technology centers on pellet fuel and grill engineering as well as connected product hardware that captures usage data including timing, duration, and error states across the installed base. Pellet fuel is sold as a recurring consumable alongside pellet grills, creating a hardware-plus-consumable revenue model.

Dansons distributes its products through three channels: national retailer partnerships that built the pellet grill category, direct-to-consumer e-commerce via dansons.com, and wholesale/distributor relationships under a no-drop-shipping policy. The customer base is primarily residential backyard cooks ranging from casual users to competition-level enthusiasts, with national retailers and resellers as the principal B2B buyers. Geographic operations span the United States and Canada. In June 2023, Dansons was acquired by W. C. Bradley Co., a privately held diversified holding company headquartered in Columbus, Georgia, founded in 1885 and now in its seventh generation of family ownership, which operates businesses across textiles, outdoor sports equipment retail, and barbecue grill manufacturing. Dansons continues to operate as an active subsidiary with a US office in Scottsdale, Arizona, and 101-250 employees.

Name

Dansons

Legal name

Dansons Inc.

Website

https://dansons.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Dansons is a multi-brand outdoor cooking equipment company operating Pit Boss, Char-Broil, Louisiana Grills, Oklahoma Joe's, and Current Backyard grills alongside pellet fuel, serving residential backyard cooks across the US and Canada via national retailers, DTC e-commerce, and wholesale channels; acquired by W. C. Bradley Co. in June 2023.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Outdoor Cooking Equipment

NAICS

Bakeries and Tortilla Manufacturing (3118), Commercial Bakeries (311812)

SIC

Wholesale-Lumber, Plywood, Millwork & Wood Panels (5031), Miscellaneous Products Of Petroleum & Coal (2990)

akta.pro primary industry

Pellet & Wood Fuel Manufacturing (IMAMABAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Biomass Pellets, Briquettes & Solid Bioenergy Products (industrial/residential) (IMAMALAJ)

Keywords

• Pellet grills
• Outdoor cooking equipment
• Barbecue smokers
• Wood pellet fuel
• Electric grills

Headquarters

HQ city

Edmonton

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Pellet Grills and Barbecue Equipment Sales: Direct sales of pellet grills, gas grills, smokers, and outdoor cooking equipment under brands including Pit Boss, Louisiana Grills, Char-Broil, Oklahoma Joe's, and Current Backyard. Sold through national retailers and direct-to-consumer e-commerce.
2. Pellet Fuel Sales: Production and sale of high-quality wood pellet fuel, originally developed as a way to utilize sawmill waste. Pellet fuel is sold as a consumable companion product to pellet grills.
3. E-commerce Direct Sales: Online sales through dansons.com website where customers can purchase products directly, register products, and access customer care services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Dansons designs, manufactures, and distributes outdoor cooking equipment including pellet grills, gas grills, smokers, and all-electric grills across five consumer brands: Pit Boss Grills, Char-Broil, Oklahoma Joe's, Louisiana Grills, and Current Backyard. The company also produces and sells wood pellet fuel as a complementary consumable to its pellet grill lines, originally developed from converting sawmill waste into a reliable energy source. Products are sold through national retail partnerships and direct-to-consumer e-commerce via dansons.com.

Product overview

Dansons is a multi-brand outdoor cooking equipment company operating as a portfolio of distinct grill and smoker brands under W. C. Bradley Co. The portfolio includes five consumer-facing brands: Pit Boss Grills (the fastest-growing brand, offering wood pellet and gas grills), Char-Broil (value-focused traditional grills), Oklahoma Joe's (competition-grade smokers and grills), Louisiana Grills (premium upscale grilling products with advanced technology), and Current Backyard (all-electric grilling solutions). Pellet Fuel is sold as a complementary consumable product alongside the pellet grill lines. The brands are managed under a unified corporate structure with shared distribution and retail partnerships, while maintaining distinct brand identities and market positioning.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Pit Boss Grills: The fastest growing brand in the grilling industry, offering high-quality and innovative wood pellet and gas grills.
• Louisiana Grills

Products and services

• Pit Boss Grills Pit Boss Grills is a brand offering high-quality and innovative wood pellet and gas grills, positioned as the fastest growing brand in the grilling industry and targeted at backyard cooks and barbecue enthusiasts.
• Char-Broil Char-Broil is a value-positioned grill brand delivering innovative, high-quality grills at accessible price points for everyday backyard cookouts, targeting cost-conscious consumers and casual backyard cooks.
• Oklahoma Joe's Oklahoma Joe's is a brand crafting authentic, competition-worthy smokers and grills for serious backyard barbecue enthusiasts, with over 35 years of heritage in offset smokers and competition-grade equipment.
• Louisiana Grills Louisiana Grills is a premium-tier outdoor cooking brand offering upscale designs, quality craftsmanship, and premium technology to deliver an elite outdoor cooking experience for premium and aspirational buyers.
• Current Backyard Current Backyard is an all-electric outdoor cooking brand offering clean, effortless grilling solutions that combine modern convenience and precision, targeting urban and convenience-oriented consumers.
• Pellet Fuel Pellet Fuel is high-quality wood pellet fuel produced from sawmill waste, sold as a complementary consumable product to power Dansons' pellet grill lines (Pit Boss, Louisiana Grills, Oklahoma Joe's) and provide authentic smoky flavor.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Traeger Grills: Traeger is the pioneer and dominant player in the wood pellet grill category — the same core category Dansons' Pit Boss competes in. Both companies sell pellet grills and pellet fuel through national retail and DTC, making them the closest head-to-head competitor.
• Masterbuilt: Masterbuilt manufactures electric smokers, gravity charcoal grills, and outdoor cooking accessories, directly competing with Dansons' Oklahoma Joe's smoker line and Current Backyard electric grills across national retail channels.
• Napoleon Grills: Napoleon manufactures premium gas, charcoal, and pellet grills sold through specialty retail and dealers. Comparable to Louisiana Grills in premium positioning and competes in the same high-end consumer segment.
• Broil King: Broil King is a Canadian gas and pellet grill manufacturer — particularly comparable given Dansons' Canadian origin and operation — competing with Char-Broil, Pit Boss, and Napoleon in the gas and pellet grill categories.
• Camp Chef: Camp Chef is a direct competitor in pellet grills, propane grills, and outdoor cooking accessories, with strong presence in big-box retail. Comparable brand positioning and product breadth to Pit Boss in the value/mid-tier segment.
• Yoder Smokers: Yoder Smokers is a competition-grade pellet smoker manufacturer competing directly with Oklahoma Joe's and Pit Boss premium models. Comparable craftsmanship, durability, and enthusiast customer base.
• Weber Grill (Weber-Stephen Products): Weber is one of the largest and most iconic gas and charcoal grill brands globally, competing directly with Char-Broil, Oklahoma Joe's, and Pit Boss across retail and DTC channels. Overlap in propane, charcoal, gas, and increasingly pellet categories makes it a key direct peer.
• REC TEC Grills: REC TEC is a premium wood pellet grill brand competing with Pit Boss and Louisiana Grills. Direct head-to-head in pellet grills with comparable connected/smart features and premium positioning.
• Green Mountain Grills: Green Mountain Grills is a wood pellet grill brand competing directly with Pit Boss in the value-to-mid-tier pellet grill category, with WiFi-enabled connected models overlapping Pit Boss's smart product line.

Emerging players

• Weber (Charcoal/Holland) Subsidiary Brands (e.g., Kamado Joe): Kamado Joe (owned by Weber) competes in the premium ceramic/kamado grill segment adjacent to Dansons' premium offerings. Relevant adjacent peer for understanding premium positioning and outdoor cooking category dynamics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dansons-inc

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dansons