LA: BBQGuys Announces Baton Rouge HQ Expansion, 50 New Jobs

26 Sep, 2019

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards and BBQGuys CEO Mike Hackley announced today the company will expand its online sales operation in Baton Rouge. Formerly known as ShoppersChoice.com, BBQGuys is an online retailer specializing in grills and smokers, outdoor kitchens, patio furniture and other leisure products.

BBQGuys will create 50 new direct jobs, with an average annual salary of $41,600, plus benefits. Louisiana Economic Development estimates the project will result in 22 new indirect jobs, for a total of 72 new jobs in East Baton Rouge Parish and the Capital Region. The company also is retaining 189 existing jobs.

“From its beginnings in Baton Rouge almost 20 years ago, BBQGuys has grown into an e-commerce leader specializing in online sales of outdoor cooking and leisure products,” Gov. Edwards said. “This company is a homegrown success story, and with this latest chapter, it is adding 50 news jobs to its online sales force and customer support staff. This is a particularly competitive field that is both growing and changing with every new development in consumer technology. As the company continues to build on its success, we are happy to secure that growth in the Capital Region with a ready and skilled workforce.”

BBQGuys has ranked among Inc. magazine’s annual list of the 5,000 fastest-growing companies in the U.S. for 12 consecutive years, with the company generating 59 percent growth in the past three years. In 2019, Greater Baton Rouge Business Report ranked BBQGuys No. 48 among the Top 100 Private Companies in the Capital Region.

“With our focus on everything related to barbecue, from products to accessories to sauces and more, we think we can become a billion- or multibillion-dollar company,” Hackley said. “Louisiana is my home, and I want to keep the jobs here. People make our business, and there’s nothing like having local employees growing us nationally with a touch of Southern hospitality.”

The company plans to utilize the workforce solutions of LED FastStart®, the nation’s No. 1 state workforce development program.

“I’m excited to see yet another business in Baton Rouge take advantage of local opportunities to expand and hire more employees,” Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome said. “BBQGuys is also participating in eBay’s Retail Revival Baton Rouge program, which is offering one year of free training to dozens of local small businesses so they can learn to grow their customer bases even more through online sales.”

“BBQGuys began its operations in Baton Rouge 21 years ago and is one of Louisiana’s great tech industry entrepreneurial success stories,” said President and CEO Adam Knapp of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber. “Today, we thank Mike and his team for placing their confidence in the Baton Rouge area. These are 50 great jobs in customer support, and we encourage interested individuals to apply to this incredible company.”