After winning the H-E-B Primo Picks Quest for Texas Best competition in 2019, a Katy-based family business is expanding its presence onto more store shelves.
3SonsFoods LLC makes and sells a jarred cilantro-jalapeño sauce called Diablo Verde. The company is run by co-founder and CEO Traci Johannson and her three boys, Ayden, Luke and George, who range in age from 13 to 18.
When 3SonsFoods won the H-E-B competition, the company received $25,000 in prize money and special recognition as a Texas Best Primo Pick in H-E-B stores. 3SonsFoods has since expanded Diablo Verde into more than 500 stores.
But just a few years ago, Diablo Verde was a sauce Johannson would make for friends, family and school teachers, she said. It wasn't until Luke, an avid animal lover, wanted to raise money for rhino conservation that the 3SonsFoods business was born. For every jar of salsa sold, $1 of the profits would be donated toward rhino conservation.
"The boys would pass out flyers around the neighborhood and at school, and they would get their orders," Johannson said. "At night, we would make the sauce in our own kitchen. And in the morning, they'd deliver to the teachers and the neighbors."
In addition to donating to wildlife conservation, 3SonsFoods has been an opportunity for the boys to get a crash course in running a business. Ayden, Luke and George are each co-owners of the firm. Ayden heads up 3SonsFoods' shipping efforts. Luke manages inventory, while George assists with product development, marketing and other efforts.
Since those early days, 3SonsFoods has ramped up production to meet increasing customer demand. The company now uses two commercial kitchens to make the products. Eventually, the jars of sauce make their way into one of three different warehouses for distribution.
Now, a new partnership with Bentonville, Arkansas-based retail giant Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) will double the amount of stores in which Diablo Verde is available. In September, 3SonsFoods will expand into between 400 and 600 Walmart stores in Texas, Louisiana and New Mexico, Johannson said.
3SonsFoods also just released a new vegan variation of its Diablo Verde sauce, called Diablo Vegan. Portions of the proceeds from Diablo Vegan will go toward the Saint Francis Wolf Sanctuary. The company already has plans to release a red salsa, dubbed Diablo Rojo, which will benefit ocean conservation, Johannson said.
"We did sell about 275,000 (total) units last year. We want to double that," Johannson said. "Why increase by 20%? Let's increase by 100%. Then that way, we can donate like $18,000 for animal conservation."
