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The $700 Million Yogurt Startup

221 points by Gaussian 15y ago

stephenhuey 15y ago
Maybe I should do something like that instead of software! What about the cheese market in the United States? Americans are branching out more and more from the limited kinds made here, so it seems like a worthwhile business venture might be to start making some of the European kinds we import.
- sammyo 15y ago
  From the small cheese manufactures I've seen it requires a long term love of the process and a resource, something like a family farm without a significant mortgage. The markup on artisan cheese seems pretty incredible.
- rdtsc 15y ago
  Not a bad idea. But, I don't think there is great demand + a shortage of cheeses. Many grocery stores already have "gourmet" sections of "fancier" cheeses. If there was any increase in interest I would imagine they would be the ones detecting that, and jumping to capitalize on it. Some branches in metropolitan areas, do and have expanded those sections, for example. For cultural reasons Americans simply don't seem to like cheeses that are not bagged, shredded and kept in the refrigerator. (American HNers might be surprised to find that a lot of cheeses are not meant to be kept in the refrigerator). Good cheese is like a living organism, it not something dead that needs to be kept cold. It has bacteria that lives on it and it alters and changes its taste. I believe you won't even be able to sell that in US simply because of local food safety laws -- cheeses have to be pasteurized to be sold here.
  - DannoHung 15y ago
    Putting stuff in the fridge doesn't kill the bacteria, it just slows its rate of reproduction down. Pasteurization doesn't kill all the bacteria either, it just greatly reduces the presence of microorganisms in food. I don't think marketing a high quality cheese is going to be impossible in America, (well, maybe not Casu marzu, but I don't give a crap how good that is, I'm not eating it) you'd need to educate your customers and take steps in terms of packaging or co-products to help them use the product best.
    - SoftwareMaven 15y ago
      Generally, when you need to educate your customers, you are in for a long (and likely unsuccessful) haul. If you are "educating", your customers aren't really feeling a pain. (Note: there are exceptions to every rule.)
    - marklabedz 15y ago
      For those of you wondering what Casu marzu is: https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Casu_marzu https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Casu_marzu
  - pnathan 15y ago
    Around here (Small college town area, middle of farmland), all the grocery stores have a gourmet cheese section. A "made in America" gourmet cheese is not going to be an instant-win unless it offers additional value. Possibly the "localvore" approach might add some warm fuzzies to the value, but I am dubious. (Of course, if it can be sold cheaper by being made in America, that's a great selling point!) I see that market as pretty occupied right now.
- Gaussian 15y ago
  American Roquefort caves.
- davidw 15y ago
  Looking at what I can get in supermarkets here in Italy, and seeing what's available when I visit back home in the states, I think there are huge opportunities in this space. I intend to investigate if we ever move back to the US.
- moheeb 15y ago
  This seems like a very poor idea if you are trying to pull off something on the order of Chobani. The United States already produces over twice the amount of cheese of any other country. It seems to me that you are not from Wisconsin and I would guess not from any of the states where cheese is big. Try going to a supermarket in Vermont or New York...the market for imported cheeses would be quite small.
  - stephenhuey 15y ago
    True, I'm in Texas. Here in the middle of Houston I see fairly large sections of imported cheeses in some grocery stores.
- chadgeidel 15y ago
  Another issue may be related to the FDA. It is my understanding that raw milk (unpasteurized) imparts a different flavor/texture to the cheese. I guess we have laws against cheese made with raw milk. I am not a cheese maker, I've merely read this on food blogs.
  - justincormack 15y ago
    Raw milk has a lot the bacteria needed to make the cheese already in it. Cheesemaking is basically farming bacteria... You get more variability and a generally better product with unpasterized cheese. I mainly eat cheese from unpasteurized milk...
bignoggins 15y ago
If you're doing a yogurt startup, do you need a technical cofounder who is an expert in yogurt? This is not a joke, I'm genuinely curious whether "technical" cofounders are specific to the tech domain or if they are necessary in every startup (another example is chef / restaurants)
- rokhayakebe 15y ago
  Almost absolutely. We say technical co-founder, but it just means somebody who can build the main stuff. In this case it's creating the right yogurt formula. Somebody making a yogurt will probably go through more iterations than someone creating a web apps.
- jonnathanson 15y ago
  "If you're doing a yogurt startup, do you need a technical cofounder who is an expert in yogurt?" It depends on the category, really. In this case, it's not as if Chobani invented the concept of strained yogurt. Rather, it practiced the time-honored art of geographical arbitrage: it found a product that had a long history of use overseas (Greek-style yogurt), and introduced it to the US in rather auspicious and on-trend times (the low-carb, high-protein craze). That's more a feat of marketing and operations than one of technical prowess or product development. I'm sure that there were "yogurt experts" on hand to oversee production, ensure the right consistency, flavor, etc. But it doesn't appear as if there were a "yogurt expert" co-founder in this case. I might be wrong. That's not to say that product wasn't crucial in this case, because it almost certainly was. But I don't think a "yogurt expert" co-founder would have been absolutely necessary, or that a "yogurt expert" presently occupies one of the top executive spots at Chobani the way a product person would at a tech firm.
  - e2daipi 15y ago
    "geographical arbitrage" - Even with the "geographical" modifier, I don't see how it is arbitrage; niche or segmented?
- edj 15y ago
  It sounds like Ulukaya is the technical founder: "I came from a family of farmers who made cheese and yogurt..." His dad was urging him to make cheese as early as 1998, and he did in fact start doing that a few years later.
Jun8 15y ago
I was just wondering about seeing the Chobani brand everywhere, it used to be just in small chains. Strained yogurt used to be niche, now shelves are stacked with it. This company singlehandedly changed the yogurt landscape but the real test will be to hold up to competition from giants. Dannon has followed the trend, too.
- kcurtin 15y ago
  I think it will be interesting to watch. I also think there is value in being so specific in what they offer: they only make Greek yogurt. As a result, they don't have trouble branding themselves as "authentic". Companies like Dannon who make all sorts of dairy products don't have this advantage.
kcurtin 15y ago
I grew up in upstate NY and everytime I make it home I hear about this story. It's pretty amazing to read about growth like this from a non-tech company. It's also interesting to think about how big of an impact they have had on the dairy industry in NY(and I'm sure other places as well). Their success has revitalized the industry and helped a TON of farmers get back on their feet.
- Gaussian 15y ago
  They had originally pledged to only source their milk from New York state, but they've grown so big so quickly that they've literally bought every last drop of available NY milk. The farmers can't keep up. As a result, they're going to have to cross state lines soon.
  - deleted 15y ago
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ilamont 15y ago
I had always thought the yogurt in America was, well, horrible. I thought if I could make something better, people would immediately take to it. I am kind of surprised that existing food heavyweights, as well as smaller "organic" labels failed to see the opportunity for a premium yogurt that's not loaded with sweeteners. The interview really didn't get into distribution, but it is quite impressive. A few weeks ago I even saw it in groceries in a very rural part of northern NY. From what I have read about the grocery business, it's extremely competitive and there is huge pressure from manufacturers and distributors to dominate prime shelf space. For a startup to muscle in so quickly is a real accomplishment. EDIT: The rural NY distribution may relate to the dairy industry connection described by kcurtin and Gaussian.
- sliverstorm 15y ago
  Have you ever tasted unsweetened yogurt? Try it and you'll understand- especially the Greek kind. Really, I'm not kidding. It's a major acquired taste, that 99% of America has not acquired.
  - saturn 15y ago
    You gotta remember that 1% of America is still 3 million people. If three million people want a certain kind of high quality unsweetened yoghurt, and you're the first vendor in line, then you may as well put your order in for that G650 because if you can execute you have it made.
    - arethuza 15y ago
      I probably go through a 500g pot of natural yoghurt ever 3 days - say $2 worth (its actually a bit less, but there's nothing "premium" about it). So I spend about $240 a year on yoghurt (ignoring the others in our family) - so your 3 million would give $720M a year revenue if 1% of the US population liked natural yoghurt as much as I do. Seems like a pretty good market to be in to me.
    - stinkytaco 15y ago
      I'm in that one percent, but I gave up and started making my own yogurt. I don't know if that cuts into market share, but I would be curious how much niche "artisan" grocery store food sales are affected by people who just make their own. Microbrews might be a good place to start looking as well.
iamjustlooking 15y ago
Too bad I missed out on that Chobani yoghurt deal Aisle50 recently ran. I wonder if writing an article like this was part of the deal to subsidize the price seeing as the co-founder of Aisle50 wrote this article.
- corin_ 15y ago
  Or possibly it's just how he found out about this person/company. (That's not an "or possibly" as in "or you're an idiot, here's the solution", it's a genuine "or possibly".)
nlh 15y ago
I'm a huge fan of Chobani and it's become my breakfast of choice lately -- but I did so for a very specific reason: It's a high-protein, low-carb food, and the diet and fitness routine I'm on specifically requires that. What I'm curious about: Is that the main reason they've become so popular and done so well? I wonder if many others are following the same diet, or if there's another reason they've become so popular vs. all the other yogurts out there. Anyone else on HN eat Chobani regularly and, if so, what are your reasons? Any other insights as to why they've done so incredibly well?
- moheeb 15y ago
  Possibly because it tastes good? That is my reason for eating it.
- 3am 15y ago
  I eat it regularly because I like yogurt and it tastes better than any other yogurts I know of. And it's healthy.
- kcurtin 15y ago
  I think it's been featured on alot of cooking shows. They launched at the right time as demand was on the upswing and Greek yogurt was getting popular.
- tremendo 15y ago
  Last time I checked Chobani had enough sugar in them, they come with mixed-in fruit. I much prefer Fage total, I call it "real" as in full-fat yougurt, lowest carb/sugar of any other competing products, very high in protein too.
  - mfringel 15y ago
    Chobani has plain yogurt, as well.
- Gaussian 15y ago
  The nutritional content of Greek yogurt is definitely behind some of the craze. But those nutritional benefits aren't unique to Chobani; they're something that all of the Greek yogurts share. Chobani has somehow managed to grow faster than the rest of the sector. For instance, Chobani has crushed Fage, the incumbent market leader. Fage grew 58% last year... which sounds good. But in the Greek yogurt business if you're not growing 100%, you're not even maintaining your market share. Chobani grew 258% last year.
maukdaddy 15y ago
Ulukaya: We’ve said no to almost everybody you can think of. We’re having fun. I’m going to be here a long, long time. I’m not somebody who is going to build something for a few years, sell it and then go off and just have fun. That’s not why I did this. Wow, such a refreshing view. Especially considering the recent sellouts of natural/organic brands to major CPG companies.
- deleted 15y ago
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- ZacharyPark 15y ago
  This is a great post. As a recent converter to Chobani as well. I think it is fascinating to find individuals that love their business and product so much "having fun" that they simply don't want to sell. If there could only be more founders and businesses that felt so strongly about their products. Well stated maukdaddy
squeed 15y ago
Chobani got an old factory that Kraft was letting go. Tesla got the GM NUMMI factory for pennies on the dollar, too. It would do these large companies well to hand old factories over to internal skunk-works teams to tinker first.
- SoftwareMaven 15y ago
  That would require cannibalizing your own products, the definition of the innovator's dilema.
- oldstrangers 15y ago
  Companies that large already have dedicated tinker factories. In GM's case, they have tinker ... reservations. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Motors_Proving_Grounds http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Motors_Proving_Grounds
3am 15y ago
I just want to add a small personal anecdote. I eat yogurt regularly, and I've been a convert to Chobani lately. I started eating greek-style yogurts with Fage, and have had several other brands but Chobani flavors and texture are superior (IMO). If you don't already know, it's the most expensive yogurt at most supermarkets, and is even pretty expensive compared to other brands at specialty retailers. So in the interest of saving some money, I recently bought some Dannon greek yogurt with coupons for about 1/4 the price. It was awful in comparison. To get a similar texture, they use gelatin. The texture is still inferior. And the flavors are not in the same league either. I think it's refreshing to see someone rewarded for not buying into the conventional wisdom that the American public has no taste and can't recognize/won't pay up for quality products.
- deleted 15y ago
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- fragsworth 15y ago
  Nonfat Chobani is also the highest protein yogurt I've seen, and beats all the other yogurts in as far as nutrition is concerned.
  - lukeschlather 15y ago
    That's impressive. I've made a general habit of rejecting 'nonfat' foods without even looking at the label because I've never seen a case where the nonfat version had more than 2/3rds of the protein the fatty version has. A nonfat alternative that has more protein is a nice achievement.
    - jsdalton 15y ago
      It appears that their nonfat version has 18g of protein: http://www.chobani.com/products/c/nonfat http://www.chobani.com/products/c/nonfat And their 2% version has 17g of protein: http://www.chobani.com/products/c/lowfat http://www.chobani.com/products/c/lowfat I imagine the difference is only because the fat displaces some of the protein in the low fat version, not because there is some special "high protein" quality to the nonfat. I continue to be baffled by Americans' obsession with nonfat products, when nearly all current nutritional research says there is nothing wrong with fat, and that in many cases it's good for you.
DrPhish 15y ago
Just wondering if anyone knows what the difference between this and some of the other simple, so called 'Balkan Style' yoghurts is. Something like Olympic's or Astro's where the ingredients consist only of milk and bacterial culture. I live in western Canada and haven't had opportunity to try anything from Chobani, so I'm genuinely curious.
sliverstorm 15y ago
the great American discovery of Greek yogurt. Hah. I have friends who rave about Greek yogurt, but not a one of them doesn't drown it in fruit, sugar and honey first.
- stinkytaco 15y ago
  I put stuff in my (homemade) greek yogurt, but mostly it's real stuff. Not corn syrup, food coloring and flavor that may have met a fruit at a party once.
ipsin 15y ago
I'm curious -- I still buy Chobani and I still prefer it, but I've had what I consider to be a disappointing spoilage rate for unexpired yogurt (estimating 3-5%, for something I eat most days). Has anyone else had a similar experience? I realize I'm fishing for anecdata here, but I'd really like to know.
mda 15y ago
Interesting naming choice. The guy is Turkish, and "Coban" means shepherd in Turkish, it seems they preferred adding an i to the end to make it sound greek. "Yogurt" is also of Turkish origin.
- jballanc 15y ago
  In fact, this is very common in Greek. The Turkish word "dolma" means "something stuffed" and it is what they call stuffed grape leaves. Greeks have a very similar dish they call "dolmados". The Turkish word for shoe is "pabuç" whereas the Greek word is "papoútsi". Also, it's true that yoğurt is of Turkic origin. If you go to Turkey, you will find it in almost all of their dishes. It's odd, though, that Americans don't seem to know anything about any of this. I'm nearly certain that if this Turk would have sold Chobani as "Turkish Yogurt", we wouldn't even know who he was...
- reinhardt 15y ago
  Actually "chobani" has been maintained with minimal change in greek, "τσοπάνης": http://www.wordreference.com/gren/%CF%84%CF%83%CE%BF%CF%80%CE%AC%CE%BD%CE%B7%CF%82 http://www.wordreference.com/gren/%CF%84%CF%83%CE%BF%CF%80%C...
  - mda 15y ago
    I see, so it is borrowed from turkish, makes sense, 2 birds with 1 stone.
- gokhan 15y ago
  For full reference, Çoban and Yoğurt, actually.
nvarsj 15y ago
This is pretty cool. I could never (under)stand how sugary most American yogurts are (Stonyfield farms being the lone exception). My significant other, a U.K expat, has long been a fan of plain greek yogurt. It is really good. The chobani fruit mixes taste great as well - pineapple being a personal favorite.
- reinhardt 15y ago
  Any similarly good brands in the UK?
mixmastamyk 15y ago
Haven't tried this brand, but was introduced to Fage while in Greece and loved it--until I realized it was 50% saturated fat. I have a feeling what this guy means about American yogurt being "horrible" is that it is typically low fat and healthy. I've tried products all over the world and whenever I hear this type of statement it tends to come from someone who has never looked farther than Velveeta and cheeze wiz. You can buy just about whatever you want in America, if you look a little harder. Heck, I can get my Brazilian Cachaça and Açaí at Ralph's (local chain) for C-sakes. It's a world economy these days.
- narkee 15y ago
  Low fat is not synonymous with healthy. Someone else made the comment that often "Low-Fat" advertised products are jammed with sweeteners or sodium to replace the lost flavor that fat provides. I think it's funny that the American consumer has been indoctrinated into thinking "Low [Insert Nutrient of the Month]" == Healthy.
  - mixmastamyk 15y ago
    It is healthy compared to the alternative--filled with saturated fat. The main comment thread referred to non-fat not low-fat, where manufacturers take less drastic measures.

221 points by Gaussian 15y ago

Maybe I should do something like that instead of software! What about the cheese market in the United States? Americans are branching out more and more from the limited kinds made here, so it seems like a worthwhile business venture might be to start making some of the European kinds we import.

sammyo 15y ago
From the small cheese manufactures I've seen it requires a long term love of the process and a resource, something like a family farm without a significant mortgage. The markup on artisan cheese seems pretty incredible.
rdtsc 15y ago
Not a bad idea. But, I don't think there is great demand + a shortage of cheeses. Many grocery stores already have "gourmet" sections of "fancier" cheeses. If there was any increase in interest I would imagine they would be the ones detecting that, and jumping to capitalize on it. Some branches in metropolitan areas, do and have expanded those sections, for example. For cultural reasons Americans simply don't seem to like cheeses that are not bagged, shredded and kept in the refrigerator. (American HNers might be surprised to find that a lot of cheeses are not meant to be kept in the refrigerator). Good cheese is like a living organism, it not something dead that needs to be kept cold. It has bacteria that lives on it and it alters and changes its taste. I believe you won't even be able to sell that in US simply because of local food safety laws -- cheeses have to be pasteurized to be sold here.
- DannoHung 15y ago
  Putting stuff in the fridge doesn't kill the bacteria, it just slows its rate of reproduction down. Pasteurization doesn't kill all the bacteria either, it just greatly reduces the presence of microorganisms in food. I don't think marketing a high quality cheese is going to be impossible in America, (well, maybe not Casu marzu, but I don't give a crap how good that is, I'm not eating it) you'd need to educate your customers and take steps in terms of packaging or co-products to help them use the product best.
  - SoftwareMaven 15y ago
    Generally, when you need to educate your customers, you are in for a long (and likely unsuccessful) haul. If you are "educating", your customers aren't really feeling a pain. (Note: there are exceptions to every rule.)
  - marklabedz 15y ago
    For those of you wondering what Casu marzu is: https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Casu_marzu https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Casu_marzu
- pnathan 15y ago
  Around here (Small college town area, middle of farmland), all the grocery stores have a gourmet cheese section. A "made in America" gourmet cheese is not going to be an instant-win unless it offers additional value. Possibly the "localvore" approach might add some warm fuzzies to the value, but I am dubious. (Of course, if it can be sold cheaper by being made in America, that's a great selling point!) I see that market as pretty occupied right now.
Gaussian 15y ago
American Roquefort caves.
davidw 15y ago
Looking at what I can get in supermarkets here in Italy, and seeing what's available when I visit back home in the states, I think there are huge opportunities in this space. I intend to investigate if we ever move back to the US.
moheeb 15y ago
This seems like a very poor idea if you are trying to pull off something on the order of Chobani. The United States already produces over twice the amount of cheese of any other country. It seems to me that you are not from Wisconsin and I would guess not from any of the states where cheese is big. Try going to a supermarket in Vermont or New York...the market for imported cheeses would be quite small.
- stephenhuey 15y ago
  True, I'm in Texas. Here in the middle of Houston I see fairly large sections of imported cheeses in some grocery stores.
chadgeidel 15y ago
Another issue may be related to the FDA. It is my understanding that raw milk (unpasteurized) imparts a different flavor/texture to the cheese. I guess we have laws against cheese made with raw milk. I am not a cheese maker, I've merely read this on food blogs.
- justincormack 15y ago
  Raw milk has a lot the bacteria needed to make the cheese already in it. Cheesemaking is basically farming bacteria... You get more variability and a generally better product with unpasterized cheese. I mainly eat cheese from unpasteurized milk...

bignoggins 15y ago

If you're doing a yogurt startup, do you need a technical cofounder who is an expert in yogurt? This is not a joke, I'm genuinely curious whether "technical" cofounders are specific to the tech domain or if they are necessary in every startup (another example is chef / restaurants)

rokhayakebe 15y ago
Almost absolutely. We say technical co-founder, but it just means somebody who can build the main stuff. In this case it's creating the right yogurt formula. Somebody making a yogurt will probably go through more iterations than someone creating a web apps.
jonnathanson 15y ago
"If you're doing a yogurt startup, do you need a technical cofounder who is an expert in yogurt?" It depends on the category, really. In this case, it's not as if Chobani invented the concept of strained yogurt. Rather, it practiced the time-honored art of geographical arbitrage: it found a product that had a long history of use overseas (Greek-style yogurt), and introduced it to the US in rather auspicious and on-trend times (the low-carb, high-protein craze). That's more a feat of marketing and operations than one of technical prowess or product development. I'm sure that there were "yogurt experts" on hand to oversee production, ensure the right consistency, flavor, etc. But it doesn't appear as if there were a "yogurt expert" co-founder in this case. I might be wrong. That's not to say that product wasn't crucial in this case, because it almost certainly was. But I don't think a "yogurt expert" co-founder would have been absolutely necessary, or that a "yogurt expert" presently occupies one of the top executive spots at Chobani the way a product person would at a tech firm.
- e2daipi 15y ago
  "geographical arbitrage" - Even with the "geographical" modifier, I don't see how it is arbitrage; niche or segmented?
edj 15y ago
It sounds like Ulukaya is the technical founder: "I came from a family of farmers who made cheese and yogurt..." His dad was urging him to make cheese as early as 1998, and he did in fact start doing that a few years later.

Jun8 15y ago

I was just wondering about seeing the Chobani brand everywhere, it used to be just in small chains. Strained yogurt used to be niche, now shelves are stacked with it. This company singlehandedly changed the yogurt landscape but the real test will be to hold up to competition from giants. Dannon has followed the trend, too.

kcurtin 15y ago
I think it will be interesting to watch. I also think there is value in being so specific in what they offer: they only make Greek yogurt. As a result, they don't have trouble branding themselves as "authentic". Companies like Dannon who make all sorts of dairy products don't have this advantage.

kcurtin 15y ago

I grew up in upstate NY and everytime I make it home I hear about this story. It's pretty amazing to read about growth like this from a non-tech company. It's also interesting to think about how big of an impact they have had on the dairy industry in NY(and I'm sure other places as well). Their success has revitalized the industry and helped a TON of farmers get back on their feet.

Gaussian 15y ago
They had originally pledged to only source their milk from New York state, but they've grown so big so quickly that they've literally bought every last drop of available NY milk. The farmers can't keep up. As a result, they're going to have to cross state lines soon.
- deleted 15y ago
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ilamont 15y ago

I had always thought the yogurt in America was, well, horrible. I thought if I could make something better, people would immediately take to it. I am kind of surprised that existing food heavyweights, as well as smaller "organic" labels failed to see the opportunity for a premium yogurt that's not loaded with sweeteners. The interview really didn't get into distribution, but it is quite impressive. A few weeks ago I even saw it in groceries in a very rural part of northern NY. From what I have read about the grocery business, it's extremely competitive and there is huge pressure from manufacturers and distributors to dominate prime shelf space. For a startup to muscle in so quickly is a real accomplishment. EDIT: The rural NY distribution may relate to the dairy industry connection described by kcurtin and Gaussian.

sliverstorm 15y ago
Have you ever tasted unsweetened yogurt? Try it and you'll understand- especially the Greek kind. Really, I'm not kidding. It's a major acquired taste, that 99% of America has not acquired.
- saturn 15y ago
  You gotta remember that 1% of America is still 3 million people. If three million people want a certain kind of high quality unsweetened yoghurt, and you're the first vendor in line, then you may as well put your order in for that G650 because if you can execute you have it made.
  - arethuza 15y ago
    I probably go through a 500g pot of natural yoghurt ever 3 days - say $2 worth (its actually a bit less, but there's nothing "premium" about it). So I spend about $240 a year on yoghurt (ignoring the others in our family) - so your 3 million would give $720M a year revenue if 1% of the US population liked natural yoghurt as much as I do. Seems like a pretty good market to be in to me.
  - stinkytaco 15y ago
    I'm in that one percent, but I gave up and started making my own yogurt. I don't know if that cuts into market share, but I would be curious how much niche "artisan" grocery store food sales are affected by people who just make their own. Microbrews might be a good place to start looking as well.

iamjustlooking 15y ago

Too bad I missed out on that Chobani yoghurt deal Aisle50 recently ran. I wonder if writing an article like this was part of the deal to subsidize the price seeing as the co-founder of Aisle50 wrote this article.

corin_ 15y ago
Or possibly it's just how he found out about this person/company. (That's not an "or possibly" as in "or you're an idiot, here's the solution", it's a genuine "or possibly".)

nlh 15y ago

I'm a huge fan of Chobani and it's become my breakfast of choice lately -- but I did so for a very specific reason: It's a high-protein, low-carb food, and the diet and fitness routine I'm on specifically requires that. What I'm curious about: Is that the main reason they've become so popular and done so well? I wonder if many others are following the same diet, or if there's another reason they've become so popular vs. all the other yogurts out there. Anyone else on HN eat Chobani regularly and, if so, what are your reasons? Any other insights as to why they've done so incredibly well?

moheeb 15y ago
Possibly because it tastes good? That is my reason for eating it.
3am 15y ago
I eat it regularly because I like yogurt and it tastes better than any other yogurts I know of. And it's healthy.
kcurtin 15y ago
I think it's been featured on alot of cooking shows. They launched at the right time as demand was on the upswing and Greek yogurt was getting popular.
tremendo 15y ago
Last time I checked Chobani had enough sugar in them, they come with mixed-in fruit. I much prefer Fage total, I call it "real" as in full-fat yougurt, lowest carb/sugar of any other competing products, very high in protein too.
- mfringel 15y ago
  Chobani has plain yogurt, as well.
Gaussian 15y ago
The nutritional content of Greek yogurt is definitely behind some of the craze. But those nutritional benefits aren't unique to Chobani; they're something that all of the Greek yogurts share. Chobani has somehow managed to grow faster than the rest of the sector. For instance, Chobani has crushed Fage, the incumbent market leader. Fage grew 58% last year... which sounds good. But in the Greek yogurt business if you're not growing 100%, you're not even maintaining your market share. Chobani grew 258% last year.

maukdaddy 15y ago

Ulukaya: We’ve said no to almost everybody you can think of. We’re having fun. I’m going to be here a long, long time. I’m not somebody who is going to build something for a few years, sell it and then go off and just have fun. That’s not why I did this. Wow, such a refreshing view. Especially considering the recent sellouts of natural/organic brands to major CPG companies.

deleted 15y ago
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ZacharyPark 15y ago
This is a great post. As a recent converter to Chobani as well. I think it is fascinating to find individuals that love their business and product so much "having fun" that they simply don't want to sell. If there could only be more founders and businesses that felt so strongly about their products. Well stated maukdaddy

squeed 15y ago

Chobani got an old factory that Kraft was letting go. Tesla got the GM NUMMI factory for pennies on the dollar, too. It would do these large companies well to hand old factories over to internal skunk-works teams to tinker first.

SoftwareMaven 15y ago
That would require cannibalizing your own products, the definition of the innovator's dilema.
oldstrangers 15y ago
Companies that large already have dedicated tinker factories. In GM's case, they have tinker ... reservations. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Motors_Proving_Grounds http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Motors_Proving_Grounds

3am 15y ago

I just want to add a small personal anecdote. I eat yogurt regularly, and I've been a convert to Chobani lately. I started eating greek-style yogurts with Fage, and have had several other brands but Chobani flavors and texture are superior (IMO). If you don't already know, it's the most expensive yogurt at most supermarkets, and is even pretty expensive compared to other brands at specialty retailers. So in the interest of saving some money, I recently bought some Dannon greek yogurt with coupons for about 1/4 the price. It was awful in comparison. To get a similar texture, they use gelatin. The texture is still inferior. And the flavors are not in the same league either. I think it's refreshing to see someone rewarded for not buying into the conventional wisdom that the American public has no taste and can't recognize/won't pay up for quality products.

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fragsworth 15y ago
Nonfat Chobani is also the highest protein yogurt I've seen, and beats all the other yogurts in as far as nutrition is concerned.
- lukeschlather 15y ago
  That's impressive. I've made a general habit of rejecting 'nonfat' foods without even looking at the label because I've never seen a case where the nonfat version had more than 2/3rds of the protein the fatty version has. A nonfat alternative that has more protein is a nice achievement.
  - jsdalton 15y ago
    It appears that their nonfat version has 18g of protein: http://www.chobani.com/products/c/nonfat http://www.chobani.com/products/c/nonfat And their 2% version has 17g of protein: http://www.chobani.com/products/c/lowfat http://www.chobani.com/products/c/lowfat I imagine the difference is only because the fat displaces some of the protein in the low fat version, not because there is some special "high protein" quality to the nonfat. I continue to be baffled by Americans' obsession with nonfat products, when nearly all current nutritional research says there is nothing wrong with fat, and that in many cases it's good for you.

DrPhish 15y ago

Just wondering if anyone knows what the difference between this and some of the other simple, so called 'Balkan Style' yoghurts is. Something like Olympic's or Astro's where the ingredients consist only of milk and bacterial culture. I live in western Canada and haven't had opportunity to try anything from Chobani, so I'm genuinely curious.

sliverstorm 15y ago

the great American discovery of Greek yogurt. Hah. I have friends who rave about Greek yogurt, but not a one of them doesn't drown it in fruit, sugar and honey first.

stinkytaco 15y ago
I put stuff in my (homemade) greek yogurt, but mostly it's real stuff. Not corn syrup, food coloring and flavor that may have met a fruit at a party once.

ipsin 15y ago

I'm curious -- I still buy Chobani and I still prefer it, but I've had what I consider to be a disappointing spoilage rate for unexpired yogurt (estimating 3-5%, for something I eat most days). Has anyone else had a similar experience? I realize I'm fishing for anecdata here, but I'd really like to know.

mda 15y ago

Interesting naming choice. The guy is Turkish, and "Coban" means shepherd in Turkish, it seems they preferred adding an i to the end to make it sound greek. "Yogurt" is also of Turkish origin.

jballanc 15y ago
In fact, this is very common in Greek. The Turkish word "dolma" means "something stuffed" and it is what they call stuffed grape leaves. Greeks have a very similar dish they call "dolmados". The Turkish word for shoe is "pabuç" whereas the Greek word is "papoútsi". Also, it's true that yoğurt is of Turkic origin. If you go to Turkey, you will find it in almost all of their dishes. It's odd, though, that Americans don't seem to know anything about any of this. I'm nearly certain that if this Turk would have sold Chobani as "Turkish Yogurt", we wouldn't even know who he was...
reinhardt 15y ago
Actually "chobani" has been maintained with minimal change in greek, "τσοπάνης": http://www.wordreference.com/gren/%CF%84%CF%83%CE%BF%CF%80%CE%AC%CE%BD%CE%B7%CF%82 http://www.wordreference.com/gren/%CF%84%CF%83%CE%BF%CF%80%C...
- mda 15y ago
  I see, so it is borrowed from turkish, makes sense, 2 birds with 1 stone.
gokhan 15y ago
For full reference, Çoban and Yoğurt, actually.

nvarsj 15y ago

This is pretty cool. I could never (under)stand how sugary most American yogurts are (Stonyfield farms being the lone exception). My significant other, a U.K expat, has long been a fan of plain greek yogurt. It is really good. The chobani fruit mixes taste great as well - pineapple being a personal favorite.

reinhardt 15y ago
Any similarly good brands in the UK?

mixmastamyk 15y ago

Haven't tried this brand, but was introduced to Fage while in Greece and loved it--until I realized it was 50% saturated fat. I have a feeling what this guy means about American yogurt being "horrible" is that it is typically low fat and healthy. I've tried products all over the world and whenever I hear this type of statement it tends to come from someone who has never looked farther than Velveeta and cheeze wiz. You can buy just about whatever you want in America, if you look a little harder. Heck, I can get my Brazilian Cachaça and Açaí at Ralph's (local chain) for C-sakes. It's a world economy these days.

narkee 15y ago
Low fat is not synonymous with healthy. Someone else made the comment that often "Low-Fat" advertised products are jammed with sweeteners or sodium to replace the lost flavor that fat provides. I think it's funny that the American consumer has been indoctrinated into thinking "Low [Insert Nutrient of the Month]" == Healthy.
- mixmastamyk 15y ago
  It is healthy compared to the alternative--filled with saturated fat. The main comment thread referred to non-fat not low-fat, where manufacturers take less drastic measures.