Grippo's

What Grippo's does

Grippo's is a 107-year-old, family-owned snack food manufacturer headquartered at 6750 Colerain Ave., Cincinnati, Ohio. Originally founded in 1919 as the Grippo's Cone Company by Angelo Grippo, the business began manufacturing rolled sugar cones and evolved over the subsequent decades — adding hand-twisted pretzels in 1923, inventing the proprietary loop pretzel design and dedicated looping machines in 1930, and entering potato chips in 1959. Today, the company produces and distributes bagged potato chips (Plain, BBQ, Salt & Vinegar, Sweet Maui Onion, Carolina Classic, Sour Cream & Onion, Garlic and Onion, Hot Honey BBQ, Hot Dill Pickle, X Hot BBQ), loop pretzels, pork rinds, popcorn, caramel corn, beef jerky, BBQ cheese nibs, meat sticks, and a signature Bar-B-Q spice sold in packs and 23 oz shaker bottles. Manufacturing uses daily production with no preservatives, and the product mix spans single-serve retail units through bulk wholesale cases. Distribution operates across three channels: a direct-to-consumer e-commerce storefront at shop.grippos.com (Continental US shipping with explicit New York and California exclusions), wholesale to local supermarkets and convenience stores concentrated in Greater Cincinnati, and concession sales at Great American Ballpark as the Official Chip of the Cincinnati Reds. A co-branded product line with Montgomery Inn restaurant produces BBQ Wavy and Saratoga Style thick-cut chips. The company employs 11-50 people, has no disclosed outside investors or parent company, and remains privately held by the founding family across five generations. Pricing follows a unit-pricing model across both bulk wholesale cases and individual retail SKUs, with no subscription or contracted recurring pricing.

Name

Grippo's

Legal name

Grippo's

Website

https://grippos.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1919

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Grippo's is a 107-year-old, family-owned Cincinnati snack manufacturer producing bagged potato chips, signature loop pretzels, pork rinds, popcorn, jerky, and BBQ spices. It sells direct-to-consumer online, through regional grocery retail, and at Great American Ballpark as the Official Chip of the Cincinnati Reds.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Salty Snack Foods

NAICS

Snack Food Manufacturing (31191), Bakeries and Tortilla Manufacturing (3118), Other Snack Food Manufacturing (311919)

SIC

Food And Kindred Products (2000), Miscellaneous Food Preparations & Kindred Products (2090), Bakery Products (2050), Sausages & Other Prepared Meat Products (2013)

akta.pro primary industry

Chips & Savory Snacks (Potato, Tortilla, Extruded) (CRADABAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Specialty Snack Foods Manufacturing (Ethnic/Regional, Gourmet, Functional) (AFAKAIAO), Jerky & Meat Snacks (CRADABAK), Better-for-You / Functional Snacks (Low Sugar, Keto, Probiotic, Fortified) (CRADABAM)

Keywords

• Potato chips
• Pretzel snacks
• Pork rinds
• Beef jerky
• BBQ spice

Headquarters

HQ city

Cincinnati

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Direct Consumer E-commerce Sales: Direct-to-consumer sales of snack products through their e-commerce website shop.grippos.com, including chips, pretzels, snacks, dips & spices, and specialty items. Products ship in bulk quantities (cases, multi-packs).
2. Retail Distribution: Distribution of snack foods to local supermarkets and convenience stores throughout Greater Cincinnati area and beyond.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Grippo's manufactures and sells bagged snack foods including potato chips, signature loop pretzels, pork rinds, popcorn, caramel corn, beef jerky, BBQ cheese nibs, meat sticks, and signature Bar-B-Q spice. Products are made fresh daily with no preservatives and distributed via an e-commerce storefront, regional retail grocery and convenience stores, and concession partnerships at Great American Ballpark.

Product overview

Grippo's is a snack food company offering a portfolio of potato chips, pretzels, and specialty snacks. The core products include their signature potato chips in various sizes and flavors (Plain, BBQ, Salt & Vinegar, Sweet Maui Onion, Carolina Classic, Sour Cream & Onion, Garlic and Onion, Hot Honey BBQ, Hot Dill Pickle, and X Hot BBQ), along with distinctive loop-shaped pretzels invented in 1923. The product line extends to pork rinds, popcorn, caramel corn, beef jerky, BBQ cheese nibs, and meat sticks. Grippo's also produces co-branded products with Montgomery Inn restaurant (BBQ Wavy and Saratoga Style thick-cut chips) and sells their signature BBQ spice blend in various formats. All products emphasize freshness with daily production and no preservatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Grippo's Potato Chips Grippo's flagship bagged potato chips available in multiple sizes (1.5oz, 2.75oz, 4.5oz, 8oz, 12oz, Twin Pack, and 24oz/1.5lb box) and flavors including Plain, BBQ, Salt & Vinegar, Sweet Maui Onion, Carolina Classic, Sour Cream & Onion, Garlic and Onion, Hot Honey BBQ, Hot Dill Pickle, and X Hot BBQ. Sold individually, in multi-packs, and bulk cases for retail and wholesale.
• Loop Pretzels Distinctive tear-drop shaped pretzels invented by Angelo Grippo using proprietary looping machines; designed to resist breakage. Sold in 9 oz bags, available in 12-bag cases for wholesale.
• Traditional Pretzels (15 oz) Traditional hand-twisted pretzels in 15 oz bags, sold in 12-bag cases. Distributed through retail grocery and convenience stores throughout Greater Cincinnati.
• Pork Rinds Low-carb pork rind snacks available in Plain, BBQ, and Hot & Spicy flavors, sold in 2 oz bags and 24-bag cases for wholesale. Positioned for low-carb dieters and general snack consumers.
• Popcorn Popcorn available in Cheese and Hot & Spicy flavors, sold in 4 oz bags and 12-bag cases. Also offered as BBQ Cheese Popcorn (7 oz) and Caramel Corn (7 oz) varieties.
• Grippo's Beef Jerky Beef jerky flavored with Grippo's signature Bar-B-Q spice blend. Available in 1-package and 3-package options for consumers.
• BBQ Cheese Nibs Cheese-flavored snack nibs seasoned with Grippo's BBQ seasoning, sold in 12-count packs for individual consumers.
• Meat Sticks Meat snack sticks available in 3-pack, 6-pack, and full case (24 sticks) configurations for retail and wholesale consumers.
• Grippo's Gourmet Bar-B-Q Spice Grippo's signature BBQ spice blend sold in individual packs, 6-packs, and 12-packs. Also offered as a 23 oz Large BBQ Spice Bottle and in cases of 6 large bottles. Used across multiple Grippo's product lines including chips, jerky, popcorn, and BBQ cheese nibs.
• Montgomery Inn Co-Branded Potato Chips Co-branded potato chips produced in partnership with Montgomery Inn restaurant, featuring two SKUs: Montgomery Inn Thick Cut Saratoga Style Potato Chips and Montgomery Inn BBQ Flavored Wavy Potato Chips. Available in 2.75 oz and 8 oz sizes.

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• Cincinnati RedsflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerGrippo's is the Official Chip of the Cincinnati Reds. Products are available at all food concession stands and select dining areas throughout Great American Ballpark. The partnership celebrates both brands' historic anniversaries.
• Montgomery InncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGrippo's produces co-branded Montgomery Inn potato chips including Montgomery Inn BBQ Flavored Wavy Potato Chips and Montgomery Inn Thick Cut Saratoga Style Potato Chips. These products feature Montgomery Inn's signature BBQ sauce flavors.

Scale indicators3 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mike-Sell's Potato Chips: Century-old Ohio-based regional potato chip maker with similar heritage positioning, family-owned roots, and same-day fresh production ethos — directly comparable to Grippo's regional chip/pretzel strategy in the Midwest.
• Better Made Snack Foods: Regional family-owned potato chip and snack manufacturer based in Detroit with strong regional brand loyalty and similar diversified snack portfolio — direct comparable on scale and regional positioning.
• Jay's Potato Chips: Midwest regional potato chip manufacturer with similar heritage positioning and local fan loyalty — comparable as a regional chip brand competing against national incumbents.
• Zapp's Potato Chips: Regional specialty kettle-cooked chip brand with bold flavors and cult following, now under Utz — directly comparable to Grippo's positioning of distinctive, flavor-forward regional chips that compete with Frito-Lay.
• Tim's Cascade Snacks: Pacific Northwest regional chip and snack brand with similar heritage-locked flavor portfolio and Utz ownership — comparable regional snack manufacturer that achieved scaled distribution via acquisition.

Broad incumbents

• Cape Cod Potato Chips: Established regional-to-national premium kettle-cooked chip brand (owned by Snyder's-Lance/Utz) — broader incumbent analog of how a heritage chip brand can scale nationally while preserving regional identity.
• Kettle Brand: Premium kettle-cooked chip brand (Campbell's) that scaled from regional craft origin to national premium chip category leader — demonstrates the trajectory available to a heritage 'no preservatives' chip brand.
• Herr's Snacks: Family-owned regional chip and snack brand from Pennsylvania with comparable diversified portfolio (chips, pretzels, popcorn) — demonstrates how a family heritage regional brand can scale into a broader snack platform.

Emerging players

• Boulder Canyon Foods: Better-for-you specialty chip brand with cleaner-ingredient positioning — comparable to Grippo's 'made daily, no preservatives' approach and indicating the whitespace being chased by emerging premium snack brands.
• 4505 Meats: Chef-founded brand specializing in pork rinds and meat snacks — directly comparable to Grippo's pork rind/jerky/meat stick product line and useful proxy for traction of artisanal meat-snack category.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/grippochipco
• Facebookfacebook.com/grippos
• Instagraminstagram.com/grippochipco
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/grippo-foods-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Grippo's