BEAUFORT, S.C. - Mike Smoak, a pilot for a charter airline service, had the idea when he got hungry while playing a round of golf at the Country Club of Beaufort at Pleasant Point a few years ago.
"I actually was driving to the 10th tee and stopped at the pro shop to get something to eat," Mr. Smoak said. "Just as I was reaching in the cart, I saw the bag of tees you buy for 25 cents, and I thought, 'Tee-shaped pretzels, that's a great idea."'
That's how he came to invent Tee-Zels.
Mr. Smoak said he contacted a patent attorney in Greenville, S.C., and started asking around to find some interest.
One person who responded positively was Andy Burris, who in turn got his father, Dr. Skeet Burris, involved.
"We introduced Tee-Zels, the original, at last year's PGA Merchandise Show," said Mr. Burris, the president and CEO of The Tee-Zel Co. Inc. "It was a great response last year, but people had some questions about the company (because it was so new)."
At the PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando, Fla., last weekend, the company introduced a new twist to the tee-shaped pretzel, the Cheez-Teez.
"The Cheez-Teez is like the cheese-flavored snacks you get in snack machines," Mr. Burris said. "We took 1.3 million in boxes and came back with 200,000, so we consumed or sold 1.1 million at this year's show."
"We had probably more traffic at our booth than any other small-company booth. I know as an emerging company we had the most traffic."
The main goal for the company this year, Mr. Burris said, is to add 3,500 golf clubs to the company's list of clients.
"Last year we were able to get 1,500 golf clubs in all 48 lower states and Hawaii," Mr. Burris said. "We got our product in all those clubs, and that really exceeded our goal, so we're right on track."
Mr. Burris and Mr. Smoak said they weren't expecting the company to grow so fast.
"We feel that we'll be in the black after this year," Mr. Burris said. "We're on a real rapid rate of growth, so we feel real good about it."
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