# Kettle Chips: Cameron Healy. The Wild Bet That Made a Brand

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2026-03-02
- Length: 1h 00m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2026-03-02-kettle-chips-cameron-healy-the-wild-bet-that-made-a-brand

## Summary

Cameron Healy, founder of Kettle Chips and Kona Brewing, explains how he launched his thick-cut potato chips in the UK before the US, leveraging word-of-mouth and cultural trends to build a $300 million brand. He details the trial-and-error process of hand-frying chips, the critical failure involving rancid oil with Safeway, and the strategic decision to pivot Kona Brewing’s production to the mainland to achieve profitability. Healy also discusses his journey from a communal living experiment in Oregon to scaling Kettle Foods with private equity partner Catterton Partners, culminating in its acquisition by Campbell's.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2026-03-02-kettle-chips-cameron-healy-the-wild-bet-that-made-a-brand#t=0) Introduction: Cameron Healy and the UK Expansion Strategy
- [4:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2026-03-02-kettle-chips-cameron-healy-the-wild-bet-that-made-a-brand#t=258) Sikh Community Life and the 1978 Dismissal
- [9:40](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2026-03-02-kettle-chips-cameron-healy-the-wild-bet-that-made-a-brand#t=580) The $10,000 Loan and the Peanut Crop Gamble
- [14:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2026-03-02-kettle-chips-cameron-healy-the-wild-bet-that-made-a-brand#t=840) Inventing Kettle Chips: From Maui Inspiration to Hand-Frying
- [28:44](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2026-03-02-kettle-chips-cameron-healy-the-wild-bet-that-made-a-brand#t=1724) The Safeway Disaster: Rancid Oil and Plant Shutdown
- [46:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2026-03-02-kettle-chips-cameron-healy-the-wild-bet-that-made-a-brand#t=2764) UK Word-of-Mouth Success and the Kona Brewing Pivot
- [55:46](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2026-03-02-kettle-chips-cameron-healy-the-wild-bet-that-made-a-brand#t=3346) Scaling Kettle Foods, Private Equity, and the Campbell's Acquisition

## Topics

- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Materials & manufacturing processes](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/materials-and-processes)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [Growth, exits & acquisitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/growth-exits-and-acquisitions)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Manufacturing partners & offshoring](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/manufacturing-partners)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies, companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Kettle Chips (product)
- Kona Brewing (product)
- Maui Potato Chip Company (company)
- Safeway (company)
- Catterton Partners (company)
- Lion Capital (company)
- Campbell's (company)
- Diamond Foods (company)
- Snyder's Lance (company)
- Derwent Valley Foods (company)
- Phileas Fogg (product)

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- [Founder Feature: Sean Knecht of Tantos!](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-05-08-founder-feature-sean-knecht-of-tantos) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
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## Citing this page

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