Overnight successes in CPG are rare. I know, because out of the hundreds of successful brand-owners I’ve interviewed, most have put in many years before landing a major deal with a large retail chain. 

Teddy’s Tallow Chips, however, is a unique case. Launched just over a year ago in April 2025, Teddy’s Tallow has already secured shelf space in over 4,000 retailers, including a massive 970-store rollout with HomeGoods from a meeting at the February ECRM Snack Session. 

In addition, the company took the No. 1 spot on RangeMe’s most recent Top Brands in Food & Beverage chart, a ranking which is based on the successes of the brand’s RangeMe Immediate Opportunity submissions as well as buyer engagement on its profile page on the platform.

Indeed, this is certainly a great example of a perfect product-market fit; tallow is a hot trend, particularly among wellness-minded consumers. That set up the pins, but it's the grit and hustle of the Teddy's team, and its smart use of RangeMe & ECRM that helped knock them down.

I had the opportunity to sit with Founder Teddy Horvath at ECRM’s recent Food & Beverage Sessions in Chicago (where me and a colleague demolished an entire bag of his delicious chips in one sitting), and learn about the company’s interesting origin and approach to retail engagement. You’ll find our full video interview below!

An Origin Story Rooted in Necessity

The inspiration for Teddy’s Tallow Chips wasn't a market gap identified by a spreadsheet; it was a personal health crisis. "The seed of the company really started when I was a small boy growing up with severe asthma and food allergies," says Horvath. "My mother had to make me homemade snacks and fry our own chips. And really it was my mom’s grandma who said, 'Hey, Teddy breaks out in hives from anything he eats. Why don’t we try cooking in tallow?’”

Tallow – rendered beef fat – was the cooking oil of choice for generations before being largely replaced by vegetable and seed oils in the American diet. For Horvath, it was a miracle. The allergic reactions disappeared, and he could easily tolerate foods prepared with tallow.

Twenty years later, Horvath recognized that the rest of the world was finally catching up to his grandmother’s wisdom. As consumers increasingly look to move away from highly processed seed oils and toward natural, ancestral fats, the timing was perfect to bring these snacks to the masses.

Scrappy Startup Phase: Frying in a Church Basement

Despite the quick success of Teddy’s Tallow, the beginning was anything but glamorous. Horvath was a software engineer who had been laid off and was waiting tables at a Mexican restaurant when he decided to launch the brand. With no money and no facility, he had to think outside the box.

"We went to our local churches who have kitchens that would be suitable for getting a license in food processing," says Horvath. "Eventually we found one in our local church who had an amazing kitchen and it was never being used. A week later, we applied for a food processing license, got the license and started frying chips in a small restaurant fryer in the church kitchen basement.”

The brand’s first big break came just one month in. A buyer for Detwiler's Farm Market in Florida called asking for 12 pallets of chips. At the time, the company was still just Horvath cooking in that church basement. It literally took him three weeks of straight frying 14 hours a day to fulfill the order. After a semi-truck pulled into the church parking lot to pick up the order, Horvath knew they needed a more scalable solution, and eventually transitioned to a co-packer.

The Benefits of Being Active on RangeMe

While early growth came from making over a thousand cold calls and pounding the pavement, Horvath credits RangeMe with fundamentally changing the brand’s trajectory, particularly participating in RangeMe's Immediate Opportunities. "What has really helped us since day one is RangeMe," Horvath says. "We’re extremely active. Every single relevant application we apply for.”

In addition, Horvath emphasizes that the RangeMe Brand profile must be a living document. "We are constantly evolving the profile," he says. "If any little thing in your packaging changes or ingredient panels change, update RangeMe. Fill out every single field so buyers, anyone who looks at your profile can see as much detail as possible.”

He also views the platform's premium membership not as a cost, but as an essential investment. "If you don’t have Premium, get it," Horvath says. "It’s well worth it. It’s an investment and you’ll get the return many times over.” 

Indeed, this active management isn't done as a side task; Teddy’s Tallow has team members looking at the platform for at least an hour every single day.

Winning Big at ECRM: The HomeGoods Success

RangeMe led Horvath to ECRM, and Teddy’s Tallow Chips participated in its first ECRM Snack Session in Dallas this past February. It was there that they met with HomeGoods, a retailer known for its treasure hunt style and trend-focused buyers.

The result was stunning. While it can often take large retailers more than a year to get a product in the stores following an ECRM meeting, HomeGoods moved with lightning speed. "In just two weeks they placed the PO," Horvath says. That single meeting resulted in a rollout across 970 stores.

Horvath believes ECRM Sessions and trade shows provide the in-person connections that are essential for brands to get to the next level. "Buyers and other people start taking you seriously like, 'oh, they took the time they got out, they have the display, they’re here,'" he says.

The Teddy’s Tallow Approach to Buyer Meetings

Despite his software engineering background, when it comes to buyer meetings, Horvath’s philosophy is surprisingly low-tech. "Generally, we stay away from decks for in-person meetings because when you sit down and you’re looking someone in the eye and then you’re like, 'Hey, look at my laptop.' And it’s like, click, click, click. It doesn’t make them tick," Horvath says. “We really try to connect with them on a human basis and just talk to them like a normal person, like I’m talking to a friend.”

However, this doesn't mean being unprepared. Since ECRM Sessions provide the buyer appointment lists in advance, the Teddy’s Tallow team spends a significant amount of time researching beforehand. "A lot of our time as a team is spent reading about our buyers, what they’re looking for, what makes them tick, and we learn everything about a buyer before walking into the meeting," says Horvath.

If it Can Be Made with Tallow, Teddy's Will Make It

Teddy’s Tallow isn't stopping at potato chips. The brand has already launched a skincare line – including Teddy’s Tallow Balm – based on the principle that what you put on your body is just as important as what you put in it. They are also set to launch tortilla chips in the coming month. The ultimate goal is to become a household name across multiple categories. "With Teddy’s, if a product can have Tallow, we’re going to make it," Horvath says. 

And while they do have a direct-to-consumer presence, brick-and-mortar is their top choice of where they want to connect with consumers. "We think that going into the stores, seeing it on the shelf, that becomes a space in their mind where they’re like, 'Oh yeah, that brand,’” says Horvath. “It becomes a staple in their pantry and wherever they go.”

Which means that you’ll be seeing a lot more of Teddy’s Tallow both on RangeMe as well as at ECRM Sessions -- like our Summer Snack Session in July!

Teddy’s Takeaways for Brands:

• Be Active, Not Passive: Don't just “set and forget” a RangeMe profile; manage it daily and apply for every relevant opportunity.
• Invest in the Details: Fill out every optional field on your RangeMe profile and keep your packaging and ingredient images current.
• Research Your Buyer: Know what makes a retailer tick before you walk into a buyer meeting..
• Focus on Connection: In face-to-face meetings, prioritize eye contact and human conversation over digital presentations.
• Timing and Trends: Leverage current consumer shifts (like the move away from seed oils) to position your brand as a solution.