Extensive interview with Traeget CEO, covers change of ownership, suing founder, moving to Utah after arson, growing to almost $1B, opinion of Weber, supply chain issues, buying Meater, and much much more.
Good and very long interview. Probably could have been condensed a bit.
A few things I thought were neat. First, that over 90% of owners buy Traeger pellets. I noticed he didn’t say exclusively, but higher than I thought. Second, Grilla at $25 million in revenue compared to Traeger at newly $1 billion seems to highlight the value of distribution at big box stores. Third, no mention of the GMG WiFi lawsuit?
Not a fan of the firm or products, but will give them props for success in a very competitive space.
Actually running a business is way more complex than thinking about running one. I've often thought it would be fun to do the Spock mind meld thing to the uninformed so that they would learn in a flash that what they previously believed is so far off.
It's rare to get a look at behind the scenes like this - of course from the perspective of the CEO- but it was fascinating to see how the interest in pellet grilling took off. You could imagine how their sudden growth caused Weber to come out with their pellet grill, likely under a huge amount of pressure. I've never been impressed with the lightweight construction of Traeger, but they must be offering good value for the money considering their success.
That's the funny thing, they aren't. Their lower end grills are medicore in construction and over priced and now their top tier grill has jumped the shark in price and features, but not quality. There's so many better options in the lower price point, and now with the price increase they are competing with stainless or thick steel 100% US made grills. If they were cheaper or better made (not even both) they'd be more competitive.
The company is pretty much living on brand name alone IMO
I'm very concerned about the part where they are considering a subscription option, there's ZERO reason an appliance should have a subscription to operate. My fridge is the only thing I have that I tolerate, because I can buy knock off filters, and if the fridge didn't have a filter I'd be buying water filters for a pitcher anyway. Pellet grills already have a recurring free, the pellets.
You're right. I hadn't looked at their new grills and some are up to $4000-$5000 and made out of double wall thin steel! Read the reviews and lots of issues as well.
BMW is offering a subscription for a heated steering wheel. I’d rather do without something I love than to support that kind of garbage. Makes my eyes narrow and that’s not a good thing.
BBQandLove Transportation and Cooking devices should work out of the box with the features you paid for up front. I'm waiting til they all start doing like video games and charging for unique UI colors or themes
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