Dragons’ Den-backed Lumberjaxe is turning up the heat on its US expansion plans, with the sauce and seasoning brand targeting a 2027 launch.Founded by Brendon and Jaydon Manders with just £100, the brothers secured investment from global business mogul Emma Grede when the pair appeared on the BBC hit show last year.
The brand has since built its UK retail presence, including a rollout into Asda following a successful nationwide Specialbuy campaign with Aldi last summer.
Now the brothers are turning their attention to the U.S. market, exploring American manufacturing, distribution and further investment to support the expansion.
The US represents a potentially natural market for Lumberjaxe given the popularity of BBQ sauces, rubs and seasonings and the brand’s American-inspired proposition.
“We’ve always felt America was a really natural market for Lumberjaxe because BBQ and outdoor grilling are such a huge part of the food culture there,” said Brendon, 31.
“We’ve built out the brand in the UK around all-American-inspired flavours, so in some ways we’re taking the proposition back to where the inspiration came from. But we’re really excited by the size of the opportunity. BBQ and grilling are such a huge part of American food culture, and that gives us a great platform for Lumberjaxe especially with the fact that our flavours are lower in salt and sugar and preservative free.
“We’ve already proved that consumers in the UK love the flavours and the brand, and now we have the opportunity to take that into the market that inspired the brand in the first place. We’re looking forward to finding the right retail partners and showing American consumers what Lumberjaxe is all about with a planned launch for 2027.”
A key part of Lumberjaxe’s US expansion strategy will be establishing manufacturing in America rather than exporting finished products from the UK,
allowing the business to build a more scalable operation locally while creating the capacity to support its planned growth in the market.
“US manufacturing is a really important part of the plan for us because we want to build something that is genuinely based in America rather than simply making everything in Britain and shipping it across the Atlantic,” said Brendon.
“We’re already talking to potential manufacturing partners and exploring what the right set-up could look like, and it’s exciting to think about building Lumberjaxe’s presence in the US from the ground up.”
The brothers are also exploring further investment to fund the US expansion, building on the £90,000 investment for a 20 per cent stake secured from Grede when Lumberjaxe appeared on Dragons’ Den in February, 2025.
The investment provided the business with backing and expertise as it expanded its UK retail presence, and the pair are now looking at bringing additional investment into the business to support its move into the US market.
Jaydon, 23, said: “The investment from Emma was a huge moment for us and gave us the confidence and resources to take Lumberjaxe to the next level.
“Now we’re looking at what the next stage of investment could look like because we want to make sure we have the right resources and the right people around us as we enter the US. It’s about finding investment that can help us build the manufacturing, distribution and retail side of the business and give us the platform to really grow the brand.”
