Cheryl Hughes has loved eating popcorn since she was a little girl, especially caramel corn.
When she learned that her favorite popcorn snack shop at Kearney’s Hilltop Mall would be closing in 2000, she decided to take action.
“My initial goal was to continue to offer caramel popcorn to the area,” Cheryl said.
Nearly 20 years later, Cheryl and Gary Hughes’ HR Poppin’ Snacks Gourmet Popcorn pops more than 20,000 pounds of popcorn seeds annually from their production shop in Gibbon. They sell their popcorn in more than 135 flavors at stores around the country.
Their stellar customer service, high-quality round popcorn and willingness to share and give back have helped them become a rural Nebraska success story.
“I am able to help people a lot through this business,” Cheryl said. “You wouldn’t think that selling popcorn would allow you to do that.”
Starting a popcorn business
When the Munchville snack shop owner announced he was closing his Hilltop Mall location in 2000, Cheryl was happily employed as a home health nurse. However, she also loved popcorn. Her husband, Gary, operated a successful restaurant equipment service business, and the Munchville owner asked if they would be interested in purchasing his equipment.
Gary and Cheryl decided to buy the equipment, and Cheryl learned how to operate it and make the popcorn she loved. Since she didn’t want to quit her nursing job to work in a retail popcorn store, she decided to sell her popcorn wholesale.
She rented a kitchen in Shelton the first two years, and she began learning how to produce great popcorn and how to be a business owner. Besides nursing, Cheryl previously worked with the Federal Crime Commission and the Council on Alcohol and Drugs in Lincoln.
Gary brags about his wife’s abilities to problem solve and make things happen.
“She’s very passionate about what she does,” Gary said. “She’s very good at what she does.”
Cheryl joined GROW Nebraska as one of its first members, and is grateful for the organization’s marketing help. She sought advice from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Food Processing Center, the Rural Enterprise Assistance Project, the Nebraska Department of Economic Development and her health inspector.
“I rely on my health inspectors a lot,” Cheryl said. “A lot of people look at the health inspector as an enemy, but I look at them as someone who can help. I ask a lot of questions from a lot of people. I use my resources.”
In their quest to make the best popcorn possible, the Hughes discovered the magic mushroom popcorn developed through years of trial and error by Nebraskan B. Keith Heuermann of Phillips.
The magic mushroom seeds pop 100 percent round, have a tender hull and don’t leave any unpopped kernels in the bottom of the batch.
HR Poppin’ Snacks started producing quality popcorn in various flavors, packaged it into clear 7-ounce snack bags and distributed it to be sold at convenience stores, gifts shops and holiday stores.
Their research and hard work paid off.
Read the full HR Poppin' Snacks Nebraska Rural Living Success Story by Kristine Jacobson Here!
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