On this Friday evening, we’re talking regarding popcorn on the show “À vos affaires”. The flavor of the movies and the perfect family treat at home, popcorn is mouth-watering.
There’s just one industry behind this salty treat. This extremely competitive market is mainly dominated by American giants, but a company from here is blown away by resounding success.
Bad Monkey was born in an apartment in Montreal North and is now trying to conquer the world with its factory in Anjou and another in New Jersey.
“We ride all the time! Day and night, almost seven days a week,” says Fabio Zeppili, director of sales for Canada and the United States and one of the company’s two co-founding brothers.
“It drives very well. It “pops”! We’re in over 20,000 locations across North America. We are also present in several countries.
For many people, popcorn is all the same. Why does Bad Monkey stand out from the competition? The purchase price, around four dollars for a 300-gram bag, is cheaper than at the cinema.
“We have an affordable price,” says Zeppili. We’re like Walmart. Anyone can buy our popcorn. Second, we have a bit of Starbucks quality. It is an affordable product that is of good quality.”
If the Orville Redenbacher, Lays and Krispy Kernels are among the giants of the industry, the Montreal product stands out in a category that matters most.
“They really focus on salt and butter. We try to make really different, innovative flavors. Also, we have partnerships.
Bad Monkey does have an agreement with Walt Disney Canada and Marvel in the United States.
“They are going to promote their films. So, it’s really a ‘cool’ partnership, and the bags are going to be sold in grocery stores across America with the designs from the movies on the bags.”
In addition to the 2 million bags produced each year, Bad Monkey also offers chocolate.
“We have granola bars in development too. So we’re going to go into other forms of food,” informs Zeppili.
Above, see Dominique Talbot’s report.