Grillo's Pickles started in 2008 after Travis Grillo returned from an interview with NIKE in Portland, Ore. Finding out he was not getting the job he had hoped for and unsure what he was going to do next, Travis decided he had to work for himself. One day, while eating his family's garden fresh homemade pickles, the light bulb went off in his head: he decided to sell his family's pickles to the public.

          Initially selling the spears out of the back of his 1985 Cutlass Supreme, Travis' wares would make their way into their first store, Salem Prime Cuts in Salem, Conn. Seeing his fresh pickles were on the shelf, Travis now wanted them in every store possible. And he knew that to do this, he'd need to be in a bigger city, so more people could taste his pickles and see the proof. 

          In the summer of 2009, Grillo's Pickles built the world's first pickle cart! After a brainstorm with friends and family in his new home of Boston, Travis Grillo thought, "what better way to get the product out to the public than in an old wooden cart." With the help of the local Boys and Girls Club, the cart was guaranteed a prime location at the Park Street T Stop in the Boston Commons! Selling his own product, making his own hours, Travis was living the life. Busy commuters were snatching the pickles up, and soon Bostonians everywhere started to catch on and began following Travis and his pickle cart. Coverage in the Globe followed, and it wasn't long before Whole Foods Markets took a look and decided to test Grillo's Pickles at one of their local stores. Serving the same fresh Grillo's pickles sold out of the cart, this time in distinct plastic containers, the Fresh Pond Whole Foods sold out their first batch in two days! 

          In 2010, Grillo's Pickles became a real company. Moving into 48 Whole Foods stores and select Stop and Shop stores helped Grillo's Pickles business grow over 500% in one year! In a year, Travis had gone from selling single spears in downtown Boston to selling palettes of jars all over New England. Grillo's was no longer a one-man show, with new employees and a new Grillo's Pickles van. Travis, with the help of his cousin Eric, spent as many days as he could demoing his pickles all over the East Coast, selling pickles and pickled tomatoes every weekend at the SOWA market in Boston's South End, and pushing the pickle cart in the summer. By the end of 2010. Grillo's branched out, being carried in even more retail stores, continuing to grow as much as a pickle company can. 

          Grillo's goal in 2011 is to expand into other regions, to go national with Whole Foods Markets, and to continue to work closely with friends and family and the Boston community! Thank you!