Today we’d like to introduce you to Stephanie Kriebel.

Hi Stephanie, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
In thinking about my personal story, I’d have to say I have come full circle. In my career, the 360 is that I started out as a graphic designer and worked on flexible packaging projects. In between there were stints at random jobs, time as a server and restaurant manager where I learned the power and importance of customer service and how a good experience in hospitality can drive brand loyalty. After the financial crash of the mid 2000s, my venture into the dog food business failed. Fast forward several years, I found my way to the wellness world – getting a Master’s degree in Health Education, teaching wellness and nutrition classes at San Mateo Adult School and starting my own business teaching community nutrition and mindfulness classes. Each of these jobs has taught me something different, helped me hone specific skills and given me the confidence to lead OMG! Pretzels.

In my personal life, I have also been on a journey that has brought me back home – to a place and with people who love and stand by me no matter what. My childhood was filled with love and happiness. Every morning before school, we played cards with my grandfather and ate cinnamon- sugar toast. This memory inspired one of our best-selling flavors! We were a very all-American family – my siblings and I played sports and were quite good. We spent the winters in Florida with my dad’s parents and his brother’s family. We were homeschooled during those trips and always came back with a plethora of knowledge – both from book and life lessons.

Once I hit high school, things seemed to go downhill. I was bored and didn’t have a lot of personal direction, so I started cutting school and hanging out with the wrong crowd. By my mid-teens, I was into alcohol and drugs. A problem that lasted for years. During that time I caused a lot of heartache for my family.

Despite my addiction, I was able to hide it and still have a business. Eventually, it caught up with me. The lifestyle I was living led to a relationship in which I became a victim of domestic violence. It was the mid 2000s, I was living in Las Vegas and began my path to sobriety. In a way, the drive that leads someone to become an addict is similar to the drive you need to succeed as an entrepreneur. Sometimes, being hyper-focused is a good thing.

I have been sober for 15 years. During these years, I have volunteered with senior centers, emergency response teams, and domestic violence shelters like Laurel House that our give-back effort – OMG! Cares – supports. I live half the time in California and the other half in Plymouth Meeting, Pretzel-vania and run the business from both coasts. I found an immensely supportive partner who I love to travel with; we hope to have a roving retirement when he ends his teaching career and I successfully sell OMG! Pretzels.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It hasn’t always been a smooth road, as mentioned above. My life, both personally and professionally, has had its share of ups and downs and here I am today as the CEO of a successful national snack brand, one of the hardest businesses you could ever be in. I had dreamed of being the leader of a well-known company for years but lost sight of that dream as the years went by. It’s nice that I am now in a place where I can reflect on the past and be excited for the future.

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We are changing the way people think about pretzels. OMG! Pretzels is a woman-owned, family-run company that crafts the only boldly seasoned, authentically-aged sourdough pretzel nuggets on the market. With 9 unique varieties made in the USA, our recipes are kosher, free of artificial ingredients, and 8 flavors are nonGMO. Each of our unique, culinary-inspired seasoning blends boasts a 2-note tasting experience and along with the light, airy crunch of our sourdough nugget,
creates a love at first bite experience. Our pretzel nuggets are the perfect standalone snack, an elegant enhancement for entertaining, and a delicious addition to your favorite recipes. We are driven by our mission to bring people together and inspire joy over shared moments of scrumptious, better-for-you snacking.

If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
Perseverance. Hands down. I believe that if you work hard and have a good attitude, you can overcome anything.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.omgpretzels.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/omgpretzels

Image Credits
FoodyHopper and Sarah Htun