Unique Concepts Summer 2008

Kernal Korner Pops-up the Profits

By Claude Solnick
For author bio, please check out our Author's Page by clicking on their name.

Popcorn is as much a part of the movie experience as Surround Sound. Jodee Prouse, the owner of Kernal Korner, is doing her best to make popcorn an equally important part of the mall shopping experience. Or rather, to have her new company, Kernal Korner, be the go-to mall kiosk for the latest, greatest popcorn toppings. "It sounds like we deal in popcorn. But we don't," Prouse says. "We deal in popcorn toppings." The kiosks offer shoppers 13 popcorn topping flavors, including white cheddar cheese, barbecue, nacho cheddar, kettle corn, jalapeno, caramel, apple cinnamon, chocolate marshmallow, sour cream and onion, salt and vinegar, and dill pickle. Yes, dill pickle.

Prouse launched Kernal Korner based on her previous success growing another specialty retail business. A few years ago she developed a new cart and kiosk division of Happy Hippo, her Sylvan Lake, Alberta-based company that manufacturers handmade bath-and-body products. The specialty retail division grew to more than two dozen locations last holiday season, a mix of company-owned locations and turnkey start-up locations run by independent entrepreneurs (turnkey packages start at about $3,000).

The Kernal Korner corporate locations help the company keep touch with its customer base, test new flavors and generate revenues. The Kernal Korner concept "has been doing so well on the market," Prouse says. "Everybody eats popcorn." Case in point: When Kernal Korner started sampling last year, sales shot up 30 percent. "We give people a little trial size of popcorn and they sprinkle on" their own toppings, Prouse explains. "They love it. Anybody who does carts and kiosks knows that demos sell. It's a good way to get people to stop."

Now a believer in strategic growth through a mix of corporate and independent locations, Prouse is hoping to repeat her Happy Hippy success with Kernal Korner. In fact, she says, "we're expecting more" from Kernal Korner. For the 2007 winter holidays, Kernal Korner operated four corporate kiosks and four carts; two in-line stores were run by independents. A single topping retails for $4.50, with the average ticket between $20 and $40. Gift baskets that run $40 to $50 sell well, particularly around Christmas and other major holidays, Prouse says. The company's busiest Kernal Korner location racked up sales of $90,000 during the seven weeks prior to Christmas '07. "Any consumable is going to sell," Prouse says. "That's what kiosk owners are looking for. Consumables people use and [then] come back."

Prouse says she has benefited from her Happy Hippo experience not only in how to maximize sales from carts and kiosks, but how to keep operating costs in check as much as possible. When she launched Kernal Korner, she opened in malls where she already had a Happy Hippo location, which allowed her to save time and money.

Independent entrepreneurs can benefit from the same strategy. In fact, Prouse is actively looking for retailers who "already own a cart and want to expand," she explains. "It's a lot easier to operate two locations in the same mall than go to another mall three hours away."

Prouse adds that this is just the beginning for her Kernal Korner concept. Like many new products, consumers end up using the product somewhat differently than intended, creating new selling opportunities for the maker. For example, "I don't really love popcorn toppings on my popcorn, but my kids do," Prouse says. Like many of her new customers, "I use mine on my vanilla ice cream."

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