ARCHER DOLLAR STORE HOUSE TIME TRIAL
ARCHER DOLLAR STORE HOUSE TIME PLUS

In the future, Kang hopes to keep expanding his company and growing the brand while scaling manufacturing to keep the company vertically integrated. And an 1.5-ounce bag of Country Archer jerky costs $3, while a 2.6-ounce bag of Jack Link's beef jerky costs just 89 cents more. A single Country Archer beef stick costs $2, while you can get two Slim Jims for the same price at Target. Yet, like CrossFit classes that can cost $150 per month, clean jerky doesn't come cheap.

ARCHER DOLLAR STORE HOUSE TIME PLUS

Country Archer partners with prominent CrossFit athletes like Noah Ohlsen and Brooke Wells for promotion, plus other Instagram influencers that post about healthy eating and exercise. The meat snacks also happen to fit under current popular diets like Keto and Paleo, which the company advertises heavily on its Instagram page with 11,000 followers (Slim Jim has nearly 10,000, while competitor 'clean jerky' brand Perky Jerky has around 6,000). вЂњCrossFit kind of has a cult-like following, and our products are very much focused to that core consumer, the consumer looking for clean ingredients,вЂќ Kang adds. Kang, a CrossFit fanatic who even brings his team to CrossFit classes, positions his meat-based protein bars as ideal pre- or post- workout snacks. Part of its growth can be attributed to Kang and Country Archer tapping into the 'clean eating' and fitness markets, two growing trends among young people.

ARCHER DOLLAR STORE HOUSE TIME TRIAL

After years of trial and error, KangвЂ™s jerky business took off around a year and a half ago after Starbucks began selling the product nationally and Costco brought the product to 4 different regions in the U.S. Getting a big breakД«ut his gamble wasn't an immediate overnight success. After dropping out of the University of California Riverside in 2011, Kang bought the company on a $100,000 commercial loan, no formal business background, and using $50,000 he borrowed from his disconcerted parents. Kang's goal? Rebrand and scale the product nationally. Kang made a seemingly rash decision to buy the tiny, boutique butcher shop owned by 80-year-old Charlie Mirachi, who gave Kang the reigns before he retired with his family. Remembering the processed jerky he ate during childhood, Kang immediately saw the unique quality in a more artisanal, country-style jerky.

During the drive, they stopped at a roadside vendor selling jerky in clear plastic bags. While he was struggling to find his passion in college studying political science, Kang went on a road trip to the Grand Canyon with his aunt. And I was just like, ThatвЂ™s not the path I want to take.вЂќ 'They wanted me to go to school and get a white-collar banking-type job or something in finance. вЂњThey were immigrants, they were very traditional,' says Kang.

Working at the store also introduced him to a job with fluid hours and flexibility-and quite a different future from the 9-to-5 career his parents wanted for him. Changing trends gave him a glimpse into the way branding and advertising influence consumer purchases.

One week he would be stocking fridges with Gatorade and Powerade, and the next week customers were looking for a then-brand-new item called Vitaminwater. KangвЂ™s parents immigrated to the United States from South Korea in the early 1980s and immediately opened up a gas station: вЂњWith immigrants, the first thing you do is go into the retail business-itвЂ™s much easier to manage and you donвЂ™t need to speak a whole lot of English,вЂќ he says.Д«oth KangвЂ™s affinity for beef jerky and his interest in brand development grew from helping out his parents. The San Bernardino-based jerky CEO says he also owes some of his companyвЂ™s growth to his work ethic inspired by his parents. I go to shops like Costco and Whole Foods and I am constantly picking up a bag of whatever it may be and turning it around and looking at the ingredients.вЂќ Following his immigrant parents-and millennial trends

вЂњI like to think my youth played a big factor,вЂќ Kang says. Despite the learning curve that comes from starting a company as a college dropout, Kang credits his success to sensing his fellow millennials trending toward 'clean' eating.

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