Wes and Sarah Wicker (photo provided).
When Wes Wicker discovered Tabasco had a jalapeno jelly, it was a life-altering experience, even if the then-Texas Tech student didn’t realize it at an event at the Four Sixes Ranch east of Lubbock.
“I decided I wanted to make some, put my own twist on it and smoke the jalapenos with mesquite wood. So I gave some to my friends and family. They told me I should sell it and ended up selling about 600 jars in college before I quit making it for several years,” said Wicker.
Fast forward roughly a decade and Big Wick’s products are in more than 250 stores around the United States and in a few countries. It’s now Wicker’s full-time career.
It wasn’t easy over those years. Wicker:
- Tried different careers.
- Was hospitalized 20 times over five years with pancreatitis.
- Survived a legal challenge.
- Lived in a camper for 13 months with his wife Sarah to save money for a house while building the business.
And that wasn’t as challenging as what came before he ever tasted the jelly.
Surviving a tough childhood
Wicker grew up in Lubbock, raised by a single mom with addiction issues. They got help from the South Plains Food Bank and a local soup kitchen when needed, he said.
He found a mower in a dumpster behind his house. He collected cans underneath high school football field stands to raise money for a spark plug, gas and a gas can so he could make money mowing lawns.
At one point he was mowing about 100 lawns, bought his own school clothes and did his own laundry, going back to when he was tall enough to reach the knobs, he said.
A winding journey before returning to the jelly
Wicker put himself through college at South Plains, then Tech, where he got a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary agriculture. He taught in Rochester – population 324 – about a two-hour drive east of Lubbock.
Teaching wasn’t his passion, he realized, and worked in the oilfield in Weatherford for six years.
In the middle of those six years, he met his wife Sarah in 2018.
On their first date, the restaurant served jalapeno jelly with cream cheese and crackers. Wicker told her about the jelly he made in college.
As the relationship grew and Sarah met his friends, she kept hearing about the jelly.
One day, Sarah called Wicker from a grocery store, asking what she needed to make the jelly.
After making some, he posted a picture of it on Facebook. People started asking if he was going back into production.
“I asked Sarah if she would help me start it back up and she said yes, and we ended up selling over 17,000 jars over the course of about two years,” he said.
Over time, Wicker discovered customers were melting the jelly to use it as a glaze. So he removed the pectin and now makes glazes.
From then to now, the Wickers – who married in 2020 and settled in Fort Worth – got some help from friends.
A little help from his friends
At the Panther City Barbeque in Fort Worth, the couple met Brett Bearden and discovered a shared interest in barbeque.
Bearden admired Wicker’s work ethic and desire for success, offering him the kitchen at his vacant rental property. They used it for about a year for free.
“I don’t run across very many people like him that young and have the ideas. Wes was willing to put in the work and I was fortunate enough to have some rental properties. This property happened to be open so I wanted to try to do as much as I could to help him succeed,” said Bearden.
Wicker said, “It was really helpful. We could leave everything set up and ready to go. I had mason jars delivered to the property. It was super convenient and helped us out quite a bit.”
Eventually production couldn’t keep up with demand, so they outgrew the rental property, leading them to partner with a co-packer in Abilene.
As the business grew, Wicker quit oilfield work and started helping an insurance adjuster to pay the bills. To save money to buy a house, Wicker’s best friend hauled a camper to Benbrook from Lubbock the couple lived in for a year.
A little help from others
In 2023, Matt Pittman, official pitmaster for the Dallas Cowboys and owner of Meat Church seasonings, featured Big Wick’s products in five videos.
The videos received millions of views, bumping sales.
“We sold 2,400 bottles in five days and had to shut our website down,” because of the demand, Wicker said, adding they picked up another 50-60 stores, like Scheels, a sporting goods chain.
“Originally, Scheels was just going to put us in the Texas store, and then they decided to put us in all 32 stores across the country,” Wicker said.
It’s surreal when he walks into Scheels, sees how big the store is and knows his products are there, he said.
When watching the television show “Bar Rescue,” Wicker went to their website and filled out a contact sheet for star Jon Taffer’s assistant, wanting to send them product.
Wicker’s phone started blowing up with notifications and the assistant sent Wicker a link to a TikTok video. Taffer used it in one of his videos, which gained Wicker tons of followers.
“It was the day that we made our very first batch in the glaze, so it was just kind of cool that it happened the same day we had our first batch made on Texas Independence Day,” said Wicker.
Kyle Lancaster, the co-owner of Kylito’s Salsa, has inspired Wicker, who considers him a mentor.
Like Wicker, Lancaster started his Lubbock-based company out of his home. He now sells in 28 states and multiple grocery stores, including H-E-B, Brookshire’s, United Supermarkets, Walmart and more.
In 2001, Lancaster and his friend opened Jodarro’s Grill in Slaton. The salsa was the biggest hit and Lancaster soon earned his nickname, Kylito. When the doors closed to Jodarro’s, friends and family asked for the salsa and Lancaster would give out the recipe.
Eventually, he received so many requests he decided to go into business with his brother and sister-in-law, Kraig and Tracye. Kylito’s Salsa officially launched in 2011.
Lancaster has given Wicker advice and information throughout the years but says Wicker has done this himself.
“Wes hasn’t just waited around for an opportunity; he has taken the bull by the horns and has taken every opportunity to grow, to get into stores, and to sell as much as he can. He’s done well for himself,” Lancaster said.
Wicker also became friends with James Vives, a fellow Red Raider who owns Brushfire Farms, a San Antonio-based company making the same products as Big Wick’s.
“We’ve become really good friends despite being so-called competitors. We were introduced by a mutual friend who is also a Tech alum. James and I speak almost daily – everything from Texas Tech football to e-commerce,” Wicker said.
Why Drug Emporium carries Big Wick’s
Amy Loyd, manager at Lubbock’s Drug Emporium/Vitamins Plus, said her store likes supporting small local businesses like Big Wick’s.
“We’re always looking for what the community is looking for. We go to the farmer’s markets and talk to some vendors there. For local, small companies, we want to be where people can get those items when the farmers market isn’t open, Loyd said.
Big Wick’s was on their list.
On Big Wick’s website, a bottle costs $12 but sells for $6.99 at Drug Emporium. Drug Emporium’s goal is not to make money off the local businesses but to get names out to the public, Loyd said.
Drug Emporium carries all its flavors, including seasonal ones.
“United carries one of his flavors and Slaton Bakery and Red Raider Meats carry all of his flavors, but you’re going to have some people who don’t want to drive to Slaton or onto Tech campus, so we’re giving them another option locally,” said Loyd.
Loyd added Drug Emporium doesn’t have fees or contracts when businesses get on the shelves.
Surviving a legal challenge
Wicker originally called his first product Wicker’s TX Mesquite Smoked Jalapeño Jelly.
There’s a Missouri company called Wicker’s Food Products.
They filed a lawsuit against Wicker, asking for a name change, all profits, damages and attorney fees.
What added to the frustration was in 2019, an employee of the Missouri company assured Wicker they would not take legal action.
But a new owner filed the suit.
When asked about the suit, the Wickers were adamant they could not discuss it.
But according to court records obtained by Lubbock Lights.com, the suit was settled. Wicker could use the name Big Wick’s and he didn’t need to pay the Missouri company. But he could not use the name Wicker for products or his company.
Back to Lubbock
The Wickers moved into a 1,300 square-foot house in northwest Lubbock in June of last year, along with a garage.
It’s a big jump after living in the camper.
“It feels like a mansion,” Wicker said.
Wicker handles all the online distribution and orders from his Lubbock garage.
The products are made at copacker called Absolutely World Class in Abilene, in business since the 1990s.
Big Wick’s glaze is in 262 stores around the United States, one store in Australia and one store in Sweden. He ships to Canada, the Virgin Islands, Australia, Ecuador, Germany, England and Italy.
“I never imagined our product would be in 262 stores all over the United States and that we would ship to seven foreign countries. I never would have thought that would happen,” said Wicker.
“My focus was just being a household name in Texas,” said Wicker.
Wicker wanted his brand to be recognizable and stand out, which brings us to the names.
“I’m trying to do things grown in Texas and known in Texas. Poteet Strawberry has a festival in the town of Poteet, Texas. Parker County peach, there’s the Parker County Peach Festival, which is in Weatherford,” said Wicker.
There are five flavors and seasonal flavors every two months.
Wicker’s two permanent flavors are mesquite-smoked jalapenos and Fuego, a spicier version of mesquite-smoked jalapenos.
Prickly Pear with Jalapenos collaborated with Brushfire Farms, he said. The November and December seasonal flavor was a cranberry glaze.
The glaze can be used on barbeque or on a charcuterie board with cream cheese and crackers. Some tell Wicker they like it on ice cream and cheesecake, Wicker said.
‘It’s a true grassroots Texas story’
“What motivates me more than anything is not to be rich, but I want my rags to riches story to inspire people,” he said.
Wicker hopes to mentor people, advise and open doors to grocery stores and copackers for smaller businesses.
“Matt Pittman with Meat Church and Jess Pryles with Hardcore Carnivore, meeting those people has significantly impacted me,” said Wicker.
He also has a soft spot for single parents, saying even though his mom had struggles before dying in 2011 from lung cancer, Wicker feels she did the best she could. Sarah was also raised by a single parent.
They’ve given Tech football tickets to single parents.
Despite his challenges, Wicker never gave up.
“I was determined to be successful. So many people love our product and I’ve always seen the potential,” he said.
His friend Bearden added, “It’s been a true grassroots Texas story. He’s self-marketed himself. He has relentlessly pursued this product in as many people’s mouths as possible. He traveled every weekend, driving wherever he needed to, typically with his dog in his truck. He started with absolutely nothing and, through hard work and perseverance, has succeeded and done well.”
Lubbock Lights editor Terry Greenberg contributed to this story.
