Kodiak Cakes, LLC

Who owns Kodiak Cakes?
L Catterton holds a majority stake since May 2021. Founders Joel Clark and Cameron Smith and early investors keep a significant minority.

Is Kodiak Cakes public?
No. It is privately held, though an eventual sale or IPO under L Catterton is possible.

Where is Kodiak Cakes based?
Park City, Utah, where it was founded.

How big is Kodiak Cakes?
Approximately $580 million in retail sales across eight categories in more than 26,000 stores.

Did Kodiak Cakes get a Shark Tank deal?
No. Joel Clark rejected the offers in 2013; revenue later grew more than 50-fold.

Who is the CEO?
Valerie Oswalt, since November 2022. The co-founders sit on the board.

The company traces to 1982, when eight-year-old Joel Clark sold his mother's hand-milled whole-wheat pancake mix door to door in Park City from a little red wagon. Clark and Cameron Smith turned the recipe into a retail business in 1995, selling whole-grain mixes to local Utah stores.

Two decades of slow natural-channel growth followed until a 2013 Shark Tank appearance made the brand famous, even though Clark walked away from the investors' offers. Sunrise Strategic Partners invested more than $16 million in 2016, funding the mainstream retail push.

L Catterton's May 2021 majority acquisition supercharged the business: marketing investment scaled, and innovation accelerated into oatmeal, frozen, syrups, and snacks. Nineteen products launched in 2024 alone drove $32 million in first-year sales.

The company claimed the number one pancake brand position in America by 2024 retail sales volume, became a top-10 fastest-growing US food brand two years running, and continues expanding into new categories under Oswalt's leadership.

Kodiak partners with the Vital Ground Foundation to protect grizzly bear habitat, tying conservation to its bear-logo identity. Products are non-GMO and whole grain, and the company reports recyclable packaging progress alongside employee wellness programs.