Last updated on September 3rd, 2024 at 09:27 am
Following months of rebuilding after tragedy struck in September 2023, Mama Geraldine’s Cheese Straws and Bodacious Snacks is back in business. Cathy Cunningham, company founder, talked about her journey with The Shelby Report at the 2024 IDDBA Show.
At a dinner last fall with some girlfriends in downtown Jasper, Georgia, Cunningham said she received a call about the fire and went to the location of the Bodacious Food Company plant.
“I drove up to the most daunting, bring-you-to-your-knees scene. My building that I’ve been operating, making Mama Geraldine’s cheese straws in for 22 years, was up in flames. It literally brought me to my knees,” she said.
At the time, the company was preparing for what it anticipated to be the most successful fourth quarter in its history.
“It was a little bit daunting to accept that all the baking we had done prior to that, moving into fourth quarter to supply the holiday season, was gone. I had a lot of work to do,” she said.
Drawing on entrepreneurial attributes of resilience and perseverance, Cunningham started rebuilding.
The response from the retailers who had carried Mama Geraldine’s was “one of the greatest blessings I’ve ever been given,” she said. “Every single major retailer that Mama Geraldine’s has been sold in for the last 22 years, they all decided to hold a space for me. Not one retailer brought in a competitive cheese straw. That’s like a miracle in the food business. Most people know, that’s very expensive shelf space.”
Cunningham said it was a testament to the partnership they had built and to the loyal customers they had. 
To keep customers informed, she said the company undertook a strong social media campaign.
“Basically, there’s one message with the content: Mama Geraldine’s is back! And within that umbrella statement is thanking our loyal customers, thanking our loyal partnerships with major retailers.”
Cunningham said Mama Geraldine’s is back on the shelves at two retailers – Food Lion and Kroger. The company is co-packing with a North Carolina facility, and she said production for other retailers is under way.
Mama Geraldine’s soon will return to Publix, Piggly Wiggly, Ingles, IGA stores and on Amazon.
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“It’s going to take a little while. We want to do it right,” she said.
The company also is planning to do an in-store contest with every retailer, asking customers, “Where did you find your Mama Geraldine’s?”
Winners will be promoted online and receive a $100 gift certificate at that particular retailer.
Cunningham said she is “profoundly grateful” to the retailers and customers who stood by the company.
“The retailers have worked with me on every level,” she said. “They hung in there. It’s also just a blessing to know that after this much time in the business, I’ve created a brand – Mama Geraldine’s – that’s recognizable. People want this one back, and we’re going to make it happen … Snack on, y’all.”
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