Pittsburgh Pickle Company
ARTISAN FOODS
Meet the brothers
Joe and Will, along with their brother John, are the owners of the Pittsburgh Pickle Company. They first joined forces to open The Beerhive, a restaurant & bar in the Strip District of Pittsburgh.
Hand-forged. Fresh off the farm.
Experimenters at heart, the brothers spent two years perfecting a pickle recipe to serve as burger sides and make deep-fried pickles. When customer demand for the pickles skyrocketed, it dawned on the brothers that pickle-making could be a successful standalone business.
In 2014, the Pittsburgh Pickle Company was founded. With unique flavors like Fire & Smoke, Better Bread & Butter, and Dill Mill, the artisanal pickles are made with cucumbers fresh off the farm and jarred immediately, a rare practice in the pickle industry. With their production facility currently based in Verona, PA, Pittsburgh Pickle Company products can be found at 80+ Giant Eagles and a variety of local restaurants, food trucks, and boutiques.
The brothers worked with Honeycomb Credit to raise $50,000—by borrowing directly from their customers, fans, and community.
The brothers decided to run a crowdfinancing campaign with Honeycomb Credit to raise money for some big pieces of pickling equipment. When the brothers just started off, they were processing vegetables and bottling all of their products by hand. Buying specialized pickling equipment would dramatically speed up their production process. The brothers also hoped to leverage community support and gather feedback about their growth project.
At the end of their campaign, the Pittsburgh Pickle Company reached their maximum funding goal, raising a grand total of $50,000 from their friends, neighbors, and community.
"It's always time to grow. Once you get comfortable, then you become complacent and people speed by you. We're always thinking of new ideas and trying to work harder and make new products."
— Joe Robl
Campaign Results
Equipment &
Building Upgrades
The brothers purchased an $8,000 commercial slicer and a $5,000 two-headed piston filler, which have significantly expedited production.
The funds also helped them upgrade their building exterior, add a shiny new metal roof, and rebuild a collapsed wall.
Brand Awareness
Because the Pittsburgh Pickle Company sells to distributors and vendors, running their Honeycomb campaign helped them build brand recognition directly with their end-consumers.
Stronger Network of Support
The campaign reconnected the brothers with a bunch of friends and family, and they've also become friends with the community investors that they hadn't met before this campaign.
New Co-Packing Partnerships
Buying the equipment has also opened up the brothers' capacity to pursue co-packing opportunities for other local businesses.
New Product Collaborations
Pittsburgh Pickle Company recently collaborated with 5 Generation Bakers, another Honeycomb campaign alumni, to launch the first ever retail-ready cinnamon pickle!
"The funding really allowed us to pull the trigger. I don't know if we would've ever done co-packing without the loan, and now, co-packing could represent a very significant portion of our revenue stream."
— Will Patterson
