Gaithersburg, Maryland, father-and-son duo Gary and Brian Edell launched their line of small batch kettle chips, My Dad’s Chips, a little more than two years ago, and they are finding fans in new markets.
Gary Edell began experimenting with potato chip recipes in his kitchen several years ago. Friends and family liked them. So did Gary Edell’s college buddies. That gave birth to the name My Dad’s Chips.
After landing their first big distribution deal in 2023, which got their chips and retailers from Virginia Beach to New Jersey, the two continued a distribution expansion this year, including what will be a big grocery store placement next year.
“We expanded as far north as Maine and as far south as Georgia. Stores such as ShopRite and Wegmans. We are in the Food Lions in Maryland, and starting in the first quarter of 2025, we are going to be in all of the Giant Food stores,” Gary Edell said.
My Dad’s Chips are already available at more than 800 stores. The Giant Food deal alone will add 164 locations throughout the Washington-Baltimore area. My Dad’s Chips are also now available on Amazon.
To manufacture their chips, the Edells use a proprietary blend of oil and only russet potatoes. But not just any russet. There are more than 30 different varieties of russet potatoes, only a few of which are suitable for proper chipmaking.
My Dad’s Chips used more than 450,000 pounds of russet potatoes during 2024 production and expects to triple that to nearly 1.5 million pounds next year.
In addition to being thicker than regular potato chips, kettle chips are fried differently. The name gives it away.
“The traditional potato chip is cooked and what’s called a continuous flow style. Basically, it is a lazy river of oil. The kettle style is basically a big tub of oil. It is almost like flash-frying the potato chips,” Edell said.
My Dad’s Chips currently come in five flavors, including jalapeño Sriracha. The newest flavor it is introducing almost seems sacrilegious for a potato chip — a salt-free version of kettle chips.
“We are selling a lot of specialty, natural and organic food stores. So our unsalted chips we think, while it’s a relatively niche market, we are going to dominate that market,” Edell said.
The salt-free version is called My Granddad’s Chips, a nod to Brian’s grandfather, who was among those giving a thumbs-up when they tested it.
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