On Episode 20 of Behind The Brand, Fuller takes a look inside a grassroots brand, Pop’s Birding, which took an idea originally created by Bethany Sloan’s grandfather, William O. Sloan, to an operation reaching the ever-growing birding community. Fuller is joined by Bethany Sloan and Pete Stankovich of Pop’s Birding, to explore how mesmerizing little hummingbirds were the catalyst for creating a global brand.
“My grandfather was always a tinker,” said Sloan. “He created tiny swings to place near feeders and began making them for friends and neighbors. It wasn’t until 2006 that we actually took the product to market.”
“One of the biggest misconceptions about hummingbirds is that they actually spend about 80% of their time perching,” added Sloan. “So, we had to first focus on product awareness and educating people about the actual behavior of hummingbirds.”
Prior to COVID, Pop’s Birding, like many manufacturers, relied on manufacturing in China.
“We have experienced a lot of peaks and valleys over the last few years,” Stankovich said. “Our biggest triumph was actually finding a wire form manufacturer that could create these swings in America.”
From those humble beginnings, the brand is poised to grow and is adding additional products to their offerings including nectar, wildflower bird seed, proprietary feeders and more.
To take a closer look, listen to the entire podcast for insight on how Pop’s Birding turned a global pandemic into an opportunity to bring all manufacturing back to Made in the USA.
Episodes are available on Soundcloud, and iTunes. Follow along on the TBA Outdoors Behind the Brand podcast page for episode descriptions and a complete collection of video episodes.
