Using $2,000 he had saved up, Joe built 12 smokers and took them to the 1987 Oklahoma State Fair. They all sold on the first weekend, and when the smoke cleared, Joe left with orders to build over 100 more. Those orders took 6 months to build and deliver and gave Joe the confidence to name his company. Oklahoma Joe’s Smoker and Grill Company was born.

Everywhere Joe went, the smokers were on fire, so to speak. Orders began piling in, and Joe soon found himself manufacturing smokers and growing his brand presence in the United States and Europe. Oklahoma Joe’s Manufacturing quickly grew, building and selling barbecue smokers to major distributors around the world.