Made in the Suburbs: Double Good
Double Good
16W030 83rd St, Burr Ridge, IL 60527
(630) 568-5544
doublegood.com
Industry: Fundraising, CPG, Food, Technology
Annual revenue: $178M (2022)
Number of employees: 244
An interview with Donna Biernadski, Vice President Brand at Double Good
Q: Describe your company. What product(s) do you make and what are they used for?
A: Double Good is on a mission to raise joy for America's youth. We offer an easy-to-use virtual fundraising platform for America's youth to raise money in support of their dreams through the sale of award-winning, small batch popcorn.
We simplify fundraising challenges by helping organizers and sellers raise funds without the hassle of handling any money or product inventory. The app saves time, energy and resources and manages all ordering, payment and delivery needs with the highest return on time. And fundraising organizers receive 50 percent of every dollar sold through Double Good virtual fundraising.
We also help amplify inspiring stories and social issues facing today's youth through our content production arm, Double Good Studios, and the Double Good Kids Foundation, which is dedicated to providing equitable experiences for children with special needs.
Q: Describe the process of making your products.
A: Every bag of Double Good popcorn is made to order using premium sourced, quality ingredients. We pop, pack and ship within 72 hours of ordering for the freshest taste. We have a core set of 11 flavors with many seasonal flavors over the year.
Our In Queso Fire flavor was named the No. 1 Gourmet Popcorn by Food & Wine Magazine with White Cheddar Go Getter ranked No. 3 and It's Peanut Butter Chocolate Time No. 4.
Q: Do you plan to hire any additional staff or make any significant capital investments in your company in the next year?
A: We have experienced significant growth over the last five years with new hires in all departments. We continue to grow, evolve and expand our operations to meet the national demand and desire to support America's youth.
Q: Do you have enough space in your current facility or are you looking to expand/find a new facility?
A: We are renovating all break rooms to provide high-end resources and facilities to our employees, both on and off the manufacturing line. We also recently moved into a new distribution center in Elmhurst to accommodate our expanding and modernized shipping activity. In the coming year, we will be cross-training employees as we integrate more autonomous equipment into our manufacturing process.
Q: What will your company's main challenges be in the next year?
A: We started out as a small company and are now scaling at an incredible rate. We are always looking for people who want to live our mission of delivering joy and bring their best selves to every type of function - tech, manufacturing, finance and customer service.
Q: What's the hottest trend in your industry?
A: We've been seeing a lot of consumers taking popcorn flavor creations into their own hands. A crowd favorite seems to be creating a lemon-dressed popcorn after it went viral on TikTok and intrigued audiences across the board. On the creative studio front, post-pandemic mental health impact studies are constantly being published, so we're actively staying on top of those dialogues and learning what we can so that we can better serve younger audiences through our content and initiatives.
Q: Do you have a business mantra?
A: Double Good exists to create joy for people. We want to unlock opportunities for all youth by making the best popcorn that is exclusively sold on the easiest-to-use mobile app.
Q: What is one interesting fact about your company that most people may not know?
A: When Double Good was first founded in 1998, we operated under the name of Popcorn Palace as a single storefront in Navy Pier. In 2017, we evolved our business into a re-imagined, digital fundraising platform.
Q: What are the benefits to you of making your product(s) here in the Chicago suburbs?
A: Being in the Midwest means we have access to the highest quality corn, mission-driven people and centralized distribution systems which get our popcorn into fundraisers' hands quickly.
Q: If you could make any product other than what you do make, what would it be?
A: We are committed to making the most remarkable popcorn sold on the best-in-class technology to fulfill the dreams of America's youth. That's our singular focus.
• Do you have a business that manufactures its products in the suburbs? Tell us about it at sbnews@dailyherald.com.