Female entrepreneurship was rare in the 1950s when Dot Hubbard became the pioneer of her craft. It all started as a labor of love.

Dot, a mother of four and schoolteacher in Sedley, Virginia, enjoyed hand-picking the biggest peanuts she could find on her father’s farm, blister-frying them in her own kitchen and then gifting them to friends. “Her friends loved them and started requesting more of them,” said Marshall Rabil, director of sales and marketing at Hubbard Peanut Company — and Dot’s grandson. “My grandparents thought, ‘Maybe this could work.’”

It worked indeed.

Hubbard Peanut Company, commonly known as Hubs, has become a successful enterprise not only in Virginia but throughout the entire country. The company found a way of transforming the process from Dot’s kitchen to batching peanuts for the masses.

Aside from the fact that Dot Hubbard was the first to blister-fry super extra-large Virginia type peanuts — now its own official category — she and her husband, H.J., were also one of the first companies in the ’50s to ship their products. Hubs were the original “home-cooked” Virginia peanuts introduced commercially in the marketplace.

Hubs has come a long way since Dot’s kitchen, but the labor of love ethos within the company remains intact.

An emphasis on customer service and relationships

The Hubbard family, while producing a stellar product, highlights what deeply matters to them in business: customer service and relationships. “Every transaction is a relationship with someone,” said Rabil. “Our customer service really loves to focus on the relationship that you have with your friends, customers and clients. We know how important those relationships are, and we want to streamline and customize your gift-giving.” 

Whether it be personalizing the Hubbard labels for your corporate gathering or simply adding a personalized message in a can to a friend, Hubbard hopes their product will naturally cultivate meaningful interactions. “It’s really just another touchpoint and emphasis on relationships. We want to highlight those — going the extra mile when offering our peanuts,” Rabil said.

Giving back

Hubs has found ways to give back to their community through multiple initiatives with Hubs Hearts. Their social mission emphasizes addressing malnourishment and hunger, and has been put into action with a recent partnership with the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia and the Eastern Shore. 

Hubs purchased an old Farm Fresh grocery store, which has now been converted for production, warehousing and retail needs. Part of the space has also been donated to the foodbank. The foodbank is using the space for storage and production of meal kits that will be going out to thousands in their community. A number of local civic organizations have volunteered their time to create the “backpacks” that are distributed throughout the region.

Good for the Earth and for you

The Hubbard family happily supports their local community through Hubs Hearts, but they hope to impact the entire nation as well as internationally — and believe that with their product, this is feasible.

“Although we are a specialty product and a luxury brand, it’s also a product that’s plant based, super sustainable and arguably the world’s most important superfood,” Rabil said. In fact, it takes a fifth of the water to grow a peanut compared to almonds and other nuts, and peanuts themselves are drought resistant and put nitrogen back into the soil.

And they’re healthy for our bodies, too. Peanuts are naturally nutrient-dense and full of vitamins and minerals. They are good for the Earth and good for you.

Boasting flavors, old and new

Aside from being a healthy snack, Hubs Peanuts are also downright delicious. Boasting flavors like sweet heat, peanut brittle and choco covered, their irresistible peanuts make for a special treat for yourself, as well as your friends, family and co-workers.

This year, Hubs is upping the ante on their peanuts by using their new space to start their own in-house chocolate production. This will allow them to have complete control of their product from start to finish.

Building relationships with people, communities, food and the Earth helps Hubs to create a well-rounded, nutritious product that helps people. And that’s what it’s all about — people helping people. So make someone’s day, and gift them a personalized package of Hubs Peanuts this holiday season.

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