DAVID HUYNH
Co-Founder · Oldest brother
VIETNAM · 2014
SOMETIMES LOSS CHANGES WHAT YOU DO WITH THE TIME YOU HAVE LEFT.
We flew from Seattle to Vietnam for our uncle's funeral and stayed at his home while we were there.
On our first night in Vietnam, David had a dream about him. In the dream, our uncle opened the bedroom door and stood in the doorway.
The next morning, David woke up and found the bedroom door open.
It was a small moment, but one that stayed with him long after we returned home.
Losing our uncle—and being back in Vietnam with our family—made us think differently about what we wanted to do with our lives.
We wanted to build something meaningful. Something of our own. And something we could build together.
VIETNAM · WHERE THE STORY CHANGED
FIX BEGAN
WITH THAT DECISION.
WITH THAT DECISION.
THE FOUNDING TEAM
THREE SIBLINGS.
TWO LONGTIME FRIENDS.
ONE IDEA WORTH FIGURING OUT TOGETHER.
THE EARLY DAYS · SEATTLE
None of us had built a food brand before. What we had was family, longtime friendships, different skills and the willingness to figure it out together.
JOHNNY HUYNH
Co-Founder · Middle brother · Hot-sauce obsessive
JENNIFER HUYNH
Co-Founder · Youngest sister
ALEX LOUKAS
Co-Founder · High-school friend · Business & international trade
ANTONIO STA TERESA
Founding Partner · College friend · Technology & marketing
THE IDEA
JOHNNY BROUGHT
THE HEAT.
Johnny had always been the hot-sauce obsessive in the family—the guy doing the hottest wing challenges he could find. While we were figuring out what kind of family business we could build, he asked a simple question:
WHY DON'T WE
MAKE SRIRACHA?
MOM BROUGHTTHE RECIPE.
Fortunately, we already knew the best cook.
OUR MOM.
She came to the U.S. from Vietnam as a teenager and learned to cook the food she grew up with from her older siblings and their families. Years of cooking—and eventually running a restaurant with family—shaped the fresh, savory style of food we grew up eating.
One of her recipes became our starting point. Then we went to work.
SEATTLE ↔ VIETNAM · 2014–2015
100+ SAMPLES
CROSSED THE PACIFIC
BEFORE WE SOLD ONE BOTTLE.
We sent Mom's recipe to our family in Vietnam, where our cousin Hong helped us find a production partner.
For nearly a year, samples traveled from Vietnam to Seattle by air as we adjusted everything—ingredients, sweetness, acidity, thickness, blend, texture, color, aroma and packaging.
Taste. Adjust. Send another.
We ran blind taste tests, brought samples to potlucks and asked friends and family what worked—and what didn't.
The standard was simple: Would we eat this ourselves?
The answer had to be yes.
TESTING FIX · SEATTLE
WHAT WE LEARNED
SRIRACHA SHOULD
TASTE LIKE CHILIES.
CHILI PEPPERSGARLICSEA SALTCANE SUGARRICE VINEGAR
NOTHING IN HERE
YOU'D HAVE TO LOOK UP.
NO PRESERVATIVESNO NITRATESNO FILLERS
THE FIRST SALES CALL · 201524
BOTTLES.
After a year of R&D, we finally had the sauce. Now we needed someone to sell it.
David and Johnny packed two cases—12 bottles each—and started walking into Seattle restaurants.
No distributor. No salesperson. No appointments.
More than 20 pitches later, almost everyone had said no.
20+RESTAURANTSONE DAY.
EXCEPT ONE.
THE FIRST YES
SOMETIMES ONE PERSON BELIEVING IN YOU IS ENOUGH.
Portage Bay was our first stop that day—and ironically the pitch we felt least confident about.
Chef Dave Miller gave us a chance.
“We support local businesses here at Portage Bay.”
About a week later, Fix was on the tables.
PORTAGE BAY CAFE · SOUTH LAKE UNION · 2015
IN MEMORY OF CHEF DAVE MILLER
Dave continued supporting Fix long after that first yes, including helping with food for events we hosted around our sriracha. We'll always remember one of the first people outside our circle who believed in what we were building.
ONE YES
CHANGED EVERYTHING.
CHANGED EVERYTHING.
THEN THE PHONE RANG.
THE PRODUCT KEPT
FINDING ITS WAY
TO THE RIGHT TABLE.
Shortly after Portage Bay, a Whole Foods buyer tried Fix while eating there and called us. In 2015, Fix entered Whole Foods Pacific Northwest.
Then it happened again.
In 2016, a Whole Foods national buyer discovered Fix while eating at another restaurant and contacted us about taking the brand nationwide.
The process took more than a year. By around 2017, Fix had reached Whole Foods stores across the U.S.
2015 PNW · 2016 NATIONAL CALL · ~2017 U.S. ROLLOUT
THE NEXT CHAPTER
YOU HELPED US
BUILD WHAT CAME NEXT.
Signature Sriracha was only the beginning.
LEMONGRASS
SRIRACHA
Our community helped us launch a bright, green-chili take on Fix.
HABANERO GINGER
HOT CHILI PEPPER
HOT HOISIN
A second funded campaign helped turn one signature sauce into a full lineup.
EARLY FIX · KICKSTARTER · THE LINEUP GROWS
ONE SAUCE → FIVE WAYS TO FIX YOUR FOOD.
THE NAME
WHY FIX?
The name came to David in a dream.
There was something funny about hot sauce: the heat hits, your eyes might water, and somehow you still want another bite.
ANOTHER FIX.Years later, the name means something bigger to us.
We're not trying to make food painfully hot just for the sake of it.
We're trying to make food better.
FIX YOUR FOOD.
FIX TODAY
THE TEAM GOT BIGGER.
THE CIRCLE STAYED CLOSE.
Fix is still built by many of the people who were there at the beginning—siblings, longtime friends, our parents and family in Vietnam.
From Seattle to Vietnam, our family and longtime friends continue to bring Fix to life—from the ingredients and production to the work behind every bottle.
Different people. Different skills. One company we've been building together since 2014.
WHAT WE STAND FOR
01
FLAVOR FIRST
Heat matters. Flavor matters more.
02
REAL INGREDIENTS
Ingredients we recognize and want to eat ourselves.
03
BUILT TOGETHER
Family in Seattle. Family in Vietnam. Friends who've been here since Day 1.
04
FIX THE FOOD
A good sauce doesn't take over the meal. It makes the next bite better.
YOUR TURN
FIVE SAUCES.
FIND YOUR FIX.
Different flavors. Different heat. Same idea: make the next bite better.
FIX YOUR FOOD.