About us
PIC GAVE THE BIG BRANDS THE MIDDLE FINGER.
AND THE WORLD, A BETTER PEANUT BUTTER.
Pic Picot. Our founder and Chief Peanut Butter Maker. A kiwi living in sunny Whakatū Nelson, when he’s not off telling the world about Pic’s Peanut Butter that is. He’ll give any peanut butter a go, but he hasn’t tasted one that beats Pic’s Peanut Butter. Pic is not his real name by the way, but it’s what everyone calls him, except his mum, and Air New Zealand.
Hi. I’m Pic, the Peanut Butter Guy.
Goodness, we’ve come a long way. In 2007, I picked up a jar of peanut butter, went home, slathered it on toast, and took a bite. It was awful. Full of sugar. I called the freephone number for a whinge. Most people prefer it like that, they said. Doubt it, I thought.
I remembered my mum and auntie making delicious peanut butter when I was a kid. So, I bought a few kilos of peanuts, roasted them, and squished them with a pinch of salt. Blew up my blender, but the peanut butter? Really Good. I kept at it. I turned a concrete mixer into a roaster, bought a benchtop grinder, and ordered a tonne of peanuts.
That was then. Now? We’re making the world’s best peanut butter. Whodathunk it! If you haven't yet, give it a try. I reckon you’ll love it.
Blind and retired
It was 2007. I was legally blind and mostly retired, having sold my sailing school but still running a small sailcloth laundromat at the marina. When the lease was up, I thought, let’s give peanut butter a go. I made a few jars for myself. Then, a few more for friends. When my son’s mate offered me five bucks, I thought, maybe I can make a bit of weekend pocket money here.
DIY First Jar
My goal? Fifty jars a week. I dropped $10,000 on a concrete mixer from Westport, a second-hand grinder, a label printer, and half a tonne of peanuts from a guy called Greg in Tamaki Makaurau. I set up the mixer in the garage to roast the nuts, put the grinder on the dining table, and got to work. The original label? I designed it myself, stuck it on with some paper glue, and it hasn’t changed much since.
MARKET DAY
Pic’s Peanut Butter opened at Nelson’s Farmers Market in late 2007. I didn’t sell out that day, but the next week, I was cleared out.
By 2008, I’d sold 48 jars to the local supermarket and hit the road. A year after that, Pic’s Peanut Butter was stocked in 50 places across Aotearoa New Zealand. We were on the shelves of both major supermarket chains not long after. My sister Judy started selling Pic’s Peanut Butter by mail to Australia in 2012. By 2016, the good stuff was in China, Southeast Asia, the UK, and the US too.
ROYAL seal of approval
It’s been a wild ride, packed with good people and great peanuts. Along the way, our peanut butter even got a royal seal of approval from the King! (Mind you, he was just Prince Charles back then.) Best bit is, we’re just getting started. If you’re interested, come by Pic’s Peanut Butter World in Whakatū Nelson sometime. There’s a spoonful (or two) of the good stuff waiting for you.
What's in (and on) the jar
Every jar is packed with squished peanuts and a pinch of salt. No extras needed. If you want to get technical, they’re Hi Oleic Peanuts. Full of healthy fats, high in fibre, and loaded with protein. They taste like peanuts should, and best of all, they’re Really Good for you and the planet.
Peanuts are tricky. A small shift in the weather stuffs the flavour. So, we roast them fresh each day in our peanut oven, Roasting Matilda. We keep a close eye on the dials to get that perfect finish, a gentle medium roast with just a hint of caramel. Good taste locked in.
You won’t find any nasty emulsifiers inside. The oil rises up and the salt sinks down, just like it should. Grab a sturdy table knife, get it right down there, and give it a good stir.
As for the jar, it’s not just for peanut butter. They’re perfect as vases, trendy glasses, or for storing tea, coffee, or nuts and bolts. You’ll spot our star-top lids at school fairs, filled with jam, stewed fruit, and those classic chutneys your aunty makes.
Oh, and about the labels. If you look closely—and you’re lucky—you might spot a special poem inside the label. It changes depending on what Pic is into at the moment. Hope you like it too.
Come see where we make the good stuff
Like 37,000 lucky people, you can find Pic’s Peanut Butter World at 49 Saxton Road, Stoke in sunny Nelson, NZ.
Come watch our peanuts spread out on the warm bed of Roasting Matilda, our 15-metre oven specially imported from Adelaide (hence the name). Follow the nuts (and your nose) through pipes to the grinders that squish them into Pic’s Peanut Butter. Once for Crunchy. Twice for Smooth.
There’s more to see too. Discover the history of peanut butter, the story of our company, and maybe even Pic himself (if he’s not off introducing the world to our peanut butter). Grab a bite at the café (like the locals do), and check out our shop packed with Pic’s Peanut Butter products and iconic merch. We’ll see you here!