Entrepreneurs / Small Business  October 29, 2015

Artisanal popcorn shop to open in Fort Collins

FORT COLLINS — Popcorn other than the traditional buttered, cheese or caramel is the specialty of a store slated to open Friday in southeast Fort Collins.

Rebel Popcorn, which has been sold at various retail outlets along the Front Range, will hold a grand opening celebration for its own “tasting room” from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 2601 S. Lemay Ave., Unit 2, in the Scotch Pines shopping center.

The store will live up to its rebellious name with more than two dozen “small-batch, hand-crafted, artisanal, gourmet” flavors such as blue cheese caramelized onion, butter pecan, sriracha tikka masala, chai, “chili cheese mac attack,” birthday cake, chipotle cheese barbecue, green chile crunch and Patagonian barbecue – as well as seasonal blends such as pumpkin pie.

SPONSORED CONTENT

Business Cares: March 2024

WomenGive, a program of United Way of Larimer County, was started in Larimer County in 2006 as an opportunity for women in our community to come together to help other women.

The shop, co-owned by Geoff and Heather McQueen and Tim and Elizabeth Solley, will open in a space formerly occupied by Gems N’ Gold, a jewelry store operated for 28 years by Enoch and Linda Silva before they closed it in May 2014 and retired.

According to its website, the owners founded a popcorn company “purely by accident. We started out making incredible granola made from spent grain from beer brewing. But one day on a whim, we created a caramel corn. We took it to a festival, and it was a runaway hit. We knew we were onto something, so we began making new and exciting flavor combinations. Each one seemed better than the last. Without knowing the rules of caramel corn, we were bound to break all of them. The rest is history. As of fall 2015, we have over 115 different gourmet flavors.”

They’ve been selling them at such places as The Cupboard, Beavers Market, Odell Brewing Co., Rally King Brewing, Aloha Coffee and Grill, Miramont Lifestyle Fitness, William Oliver’s Publick House and Jessup Farms Artisan Village Farmers Market in Fort Collins, Skimmeez Sweet Shop, Studio Vino, Grimm Brothers Brewhouse and Dog Baths and Beyond in Loveland, and NOCO Crop Stop in Windsor.

A release party will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. today at Snowbank Brewing, 225 N. Lemay Ave.

FORT COLLINS — Popcorn other than the traditional buttered, cheese or caramel is the specialty of a store slated to open Friday in southeast Fort Collins.

Rebel Popcorn, which has been sold at various retail outlets along the Front Range, will hold a grand opening celebration for its own “tasting room” from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 2601 S. Lemay Ave., Unit 2, in the Scotch Pines shopping center.

The store will live up to its rebellious name with more than two dozen “small-batch, hand-crafted, artisanal, gourmet” flavors such as blue cheese caramelized onion, butter pecan, sriracha tikka masala, chai, “chili…

Dallas Heltzell
With BizWest since 2012 and in Colorado since 1979, Dallas worked at the Longmont Times-Call, Colorado Springs Gazette, Denver Post and Public News Service. A Missouri native and Mizzou School of Journalism grad, Dallas started as a sports writer and outdoor columnist at the St. Charles (Mo.) Banner-News, then went to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch before fleeing the heat and humidity for the Rockies. He especially loves covering our mountain communities.
Sign up for BizWest Daily Alerts