industry food manufacturing founded 1918 1918 in seattle washington founder constantino oberto headquarters kent washington key people tom hernquist president & ceo products beef jerky bacon jerky chicken strips meat snacks pork jerky turkey jerky brands oberto lowerey s pacific gold cattleman s cut smokecraft website http www.oberto.com oberto brands is a family owned business 1 that makes meat snacks including all natural jerky pepperoni and other smoked meats . the company was founded in 1918 by constantino oberto in seattle washington . it is now headquartered in kent washington . 2 the company sells products under the oberto oberto classics lowrey s meat snacks pacific gold beef jerky and cattleman s cut brands . citation needed contents 1 history 2 marketing 3 references 4 external links history edit constantino oberto founded the oberto sausage company making and selling hand made italian sausage in seattle washington in 1918 . using italian family recipes he began making salami coppacola and other sausages . 3 on labor day 1943 oberto died leaving his company and its two employees to his family . art oberto constantino s 16 year old son took over the company . 4 he continued to run the company while completing his studies at west seattle high school resisting pressure to sell the business . 4 3 5 by 1954 revenue had grown enough to begin construction on a new factory completed the following year with the help of a loan from the family of oberto s new wife dorothy vennetti . 4 6 oberto brands continued to grow through the 1960s with the production of its flagship beef jerky product and introduction of the product at safeway stores in 1967 . safeway was the first national grocery chain to carry oberto brands jerky . 7 8 in 1990 laura oberto joined her father in a leadership role and became the co chairman of the company . the following year she took over as president of oberto brands . 9 in 1994 oberto brands purchased smoke craft and lowrey s meat snacks brands and facilities both based in albany oregon . the purchase added 200 employees to the company . 10 in 1999 the company entered into a distribution partnership with the frito lay company . 11 in 2002 oberto brands purchased the pacific sun industries which produced the pacific gold brand . 12 13 in 2009 after slow sales oberto brands ended the distribution deal with frito lay and began distributing its own products . 14 15 shortly after the agreement was terminated oberto brands named tom ennis ceo and president . 16 the company adjusted the recipes for its flagship jerky products in 2012 removing corn syrup preservatives dextrose and other artificial ingredients . 17 in 2013 oberto brands opened a production and distribution center in nashville tennessee . the factory added over 300 employees to the company s workforce . 18 19 ennis left the company in 2014 and thomas hernquist was named the ceo and president in january 2015 . 20 marketing edit oberto brands eccentric marketing tactics began with art oberto who frequently drove an oberto branded lincoln town car the jerky mobile around the seattle area beginning in the 1950s . 4 the company also sponsored a hydroplane race boat from 1975 until the end of 2015 . 21 22 the company s you get out what you put in campaign features professional athletes and has included snowboarder louie vito seattle seahawks cornerback richard sherman new england patriots tight end rob gronkowski the united states men s national soccer team clint dempsey and sportscaster dick vitale talking to a little voice in their stomachs played by stephen a. smith . 23 the company has also recruited former nfl player brian urlacher and trainer harley pasternak to join dempsey and vito as spokespeople for the brand and an active lifestyle . 24 beginning in 2014 oberto brands announced a partnership with the tough mudder events . as part of the deal oberto also donated 100 000 to the wounded warrior project . 25 the partnership was renewed in 2015 . 26 in 2015 the company launched a commercial during shark week in which the ceo throws a giant piece of jerky into the ocean and a great white shark jumps from the water to eat it . 27 references edit wong brad august 1 2008 . family gives seniors best seats outside the house for seafair . seattle post intelligencer . company overview of oberto sausage co inc. . bloomberg business . retrieved december 16 2015 . a b mulady kathy april 25 2002 . you never sausage determination as built oberto . seattle pi . retrieved december 16 2015 . a b c d kugiya hugo january 11 1998 . the self made man corporate america does not have much room for types like art oberto candid in a way that frightens most managers . then there s the jerky mobile . the seattle times . retrieved december 16 2015 . wshs hall of fame member list . retrieved december 16 2015 . rock solid after 57 years of marriage dorothy and art oberto . northwest public radio . retrieved december 16 2015 . oh boy oberto original bacon jerky . jerky ingredients . february 13 2014 . retrieved december 16 2015 . oberto about page . oberto . retrieved december 16 2015 . wieland nogaki sylvia july 11 1994 . oberto u lessons finance degree lead to company presidency . the seattle times . retrieved december 16 2015 . oberto to purchase lowrey s smoke craft snack brands . the seattle times . february 23 1994 . retrieved december 16 2015 . lane polly november 4 1999 . oberto links with frito lay . seattle times . retrieved december 16 2015 . 3 reasons why most jerky isn t healthy . retrieved 29 june 2016 . pacific gold beef jerky hot & spicy . jerky reviews . january 11 2009 . retrieved december 16 2015 . grunbaum rami april 12 2009 . oberto and frito lay clash over meat treats . the seattle times . retrieved december 16 2015 . frito lay oberto agree to end partnership . convenience store and fuel news . may 29 2009 . retrieved december 16 2015 . thomas c. ennis executive profile . bloomberg business . retrieved december 16 2015 . chaker anne marie september 26 2012 . trying to end jerky shame with gourmet flavors . wall street journal . retrieved december 16 2015 . de lombaerde geert november 14 2012 . 300 jerky jobs coming to town . nashville post . retrieved december 16 2015 . oberto plans nashville production facility 300 jobs . nashville business journal . november 14 2012 . retrieved december 16 2015 . oberto brands announces new leadership . convenience store and fuel news . january 7 2015 . retrieved december 16 2015 . liebeskind josh july 31 2015 . art oberto enjoys his moment in the sun at seafair hydros . seattle times . retrieved december 16 2015 . campbell mark ; campbell david june 30 2015 . oberto leaving h1 miss madison . madison courier . retrieved december 16 2015 . jessop alicia december 20 2014 . how richard sherman and stephen a. smith helped oberto beef jerky see significant growth in 2014 . forbes . retrieved december 16 2015 . oberto turns to athletes brian urlacher and clint dempsey on increased push behind america s protein . yahoo finance . april 9 2014 . retrieved december 16 2015 . oberto partners with tough mudder . meat and poultry . april 8 2014 . retrieved december 16 2015 . dreier fred january 19 2015 . tough mudder adds anheuser busch and chipotle to 2015 sponsor lineup . sports business daily . retrieved december 16 2015 . burn david june 30 2015 . eat like a shark . adpulp . retrieved december 16 2015 . external links edit official website v t e pepsico corporate directors indra nooyi chairman & ceo robert eugene allen dina dublon alberto ibarg en steven reinemund pepsi diet pepsi pepsi max north america and international versions pepsi next throwback jazz diet kas izze mountain dew manzanita sol mirinda mist twist mug root beer slice 7 up outside united states amp energy aquafina ethos water under license lipton brisk iced tea under license no fear under license ocean spray under license frappuccino under license starbucks under license sobe shani duke s lemonade duke s mangola frito lay lay s ruffles doritos tostitos fritos cheetos rold gold funyuns sun chips cracker jack munchos smartfood oberto distributed hostess lay s stax miss vickie s munchies walkers sabritas smith s bluebird gamesa kurkure uncle chipps sabra 49 % tropicana products copella dole under license naked tropicana tropolis quaker oats company quaker instant oatmeal cap n crunch life quisp king vitaman oh s aunt jemima chewy granola bars rice a roni toddy scott s porage oats tchudo gatorade propel fitness water other holdings lebedyansky sandora wimm bill dann duke and sons pepsi p1 retrieved from https en.wikipedia.org w index.php title oberto sausage company & oldid 744516449 categories food manufacturers of the united statescompanies based in kent washingtonsausage companieshidden categories pages using infobox company with unsupported parametersall articles with unsourced statementsarticles with unsourced statements from june 2016 navigation menu 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