KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Jeff King’s jerky brand started with some curiosity about the popular meat snack and some subsequent experimentation with a few recipes he stumbled across on the internet.
Seven years later, the professional golf caddie turned his garage-based side hustle, known as Kingmade Jerky, into a full-time endeavor that recently announced a partnership with the largest golf tour in the world: the PGA Tour.
“It’s been supported by the PGA Tour players since day one,” King said of his jerky. “It was kind of their idea more than mine because they thought it was so good. Everybody from Graeme McDowell to Davis Love, Billy Horschel to Rickie Fowler, they were all into it. It’s just been a demand thing. They all told each other about it, and they all started asking me to make it. I ended up at the end of the day before it was made commercially with five dehydrators in my kitchen. So, it kind of turned into a full-time jerky factory at the house.”
In this episode, King discusses his business venture, which included a formulation he developed at his Texas home, as well as the process of sourcing the right raw materials used to make his product now.
He also describes how working as a caddie helped him achieve the product attributes golfers and other customers wanted.
Kingmade jerky is made with grass-fed flank steak formulated with less salt and sugar than many traditional meat snacks. Kingmade Jerky is available in Classic, Buffalo and Sweet Chili flavors.
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