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How a joke can grow and become a serious company; United Brands Group, formerly known as BarrelQ, is a perfect example of that. In 2013, TV-producer and founder Onno Vos figured out that he wanted to create ‘something’ with oil barrels. “My father is active in the oil business and I encountered someone who turned oil barrels into barbecues. It seemed like a nice trade besides my TV work. I ordered a full truck and assembled it myself. In the first year I sold 250 pieces, the year after that 500, and the year after that I sold 5000 pieces.” From that moment on, BarrelQ was founded…

Onno started BarrelQ on his own but during the first year a willing investor presented himself. Huub Sparnaay saw an advertisement board next to the highway and ordered a BBQ piece. He was so impressed after using the BarrelQ that he decided to send an email to Vos asking if he was looking for an investor. Sparnaay: “It was then that we decided to make a serious company out of it. Besides possessing the required knowledge and skills to add value to the company and the availability of money, I also saw some points of improvement.” At that moment Gerben Bierbooms, current CEO, joined. Gerben was not fully unknown to Sparnaay because of their work history together. Bierbooms: “I could add value to the online world and internationalization of the company, that was the starting point.”

After the successful launch of the BarrelQ brand and BBQs the three entrepreneurs decided to launch a second more basic and price-friendly brand called Drumgrill. The Drumgrill barrels are sold via high volume retail and do-it-yourself-stores. They are also perfect for branding, due to their lower pricing and more basic design.

Ultimately, both brands were owned by United Barrel Grills, the holding company the partners launched in 2017.

The UBG team is working hard to become the worlds leading company in the sales of oil drum grills and firepits. In 2018 it opened up a new office and assembly facility in Breda, The Netherlands, to make sure it can meet demands and further professionalize. The Big Hairy Audacious Goal is to sell 150.000 Barrel based grills on a yearly basis in 2025.