Foodtrepreneur Festival: Get to Know Your Foodtrepreneur

Chili Beak

Chili Beak is an addictive chili oil. Made without sugar and vinegar, it has a spicy and smoky flavor. Giselle and Jason McClure are the husband and wife team behind Chili Beak. Chili Beak is returning to the Foodtrepreneur Festival this year, and is looking forward to connecting with current and future customers.

SLUG: Tell us about your Chili Beak.
Jason McClure: My wife is from Mexico where they use chili oils on everything, from pizza to seafood. She introduced it to me, and it was love at first site. It wasn’t like a hot sauce—there’s no vinegar, no acidity. Being from Texas, I love BBQ, so we decided to add some smokiness to the flavor profile.

SLUG: What motivated you to become a foodtrepreneur?
McClure: When we moved down to the states from Mexico, we missed eating chili oil on our food, so we decided to make the product ourselves. We worked on the recipe for seven months and started giving it out to friends. Their enthusiasm made us believe we could turn this into a legitimate business.

SLUG: What challenges have you overcome as a foodtrepreneur?
McClure: Getting the product to market was a challenge. We made sure we did everything right, from barcodes to labels. Next came certifications and legal stuff. Next, we had to figure out how to sell the product and who our niche market was. Now our biggest challenge is growth.

SLUG: What advice would you give to someone thinking about starting a food business?
McClure: The number-one thing is to not rush in. The second is to use resources like Utah’s Own and My Local Life, a facebook group for food producers, food bloggers and chefs. The final concept is to understand that there’s a lot of hard work involved. It’s rewarding, but it’s a lot of hard work.

SLUG: How important are events like this festival to your business?
McClure: What’s cool about every event, especially the Foodtrepreneur Festival, is that it connects us to people. You can’t measure the impact up front, but it’s there.

SLUG: How does social media and word-of-mouth advertising affect your business?
McClure: Our sales have quadrupled online, which I think it a direct influence of our social media. It gives people ideas how to use our product. We also get to promote other local businesses and connect with people. If you connect with one or two influencers or food bloggers, it will have a huge impact on your business.

SLUG: Where can people buy Chili Beak?
McClure: Besides online and at farmers markets, you can find Chili Beak at Harmons Neighborhood Grocery in the cheese island. Whole Foods Market carries it on the condiment aisle. You can also find Chili Beak at Caputo’s Market, Liberty Heights Fresh, Real Foods Market and several smaller stores.