How Which Wich is Changing the World With PB&J

Chances are, at some point in your life, you’ve had the goal of doing something noble to help make the world a better place. Chances are even better that you haven’t been bold enough to put that goal front and center on your business card.

But, then again, you’re not Jeff Sinelli.

As the founder, chief executive officer and chief vibe officer of Which Wich, Sinelli set his mind to taking real action to change the world after attending his first Conscious Capitalism conference in San Francisco in 2013. It was there that Sinelli met the CEO of the Container Store and handed him that business card with the bold message on it.

“He took one look at the card and then asked me how I was going to live up to that mantra of making the world a better place,” Sinelli said. “I didn’t have a great answer, and that really resonated with me. So, I flew back to Dallas and set my mind to work to change it.”

The answer came from an unexpected place: the humble peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Sinelli and his wife Courtney both share a lifelong affinity for the PB&J, and the low-cost, nutritious option became a comfort food during lean times in Sinelli’s entrepreneurial journey, from culinary training to the creation (and eventual sale) of Genghis Grill, and the founding of Which Wich, a wildly successful and rapidly expanding franchise concept that skyrocketed past its 400^th unit earlier this year. The Dallas-based brand now has locations in 40 states and 11 countries.

Since the 2014 founding Project PB&J, an initiative of the Which Wich Cares Foundation, the simple sandwich truly has helped to change the world. Which Wich employees, vendor partners and volunteers regularly host “spreading parties” across the nation, making massive amounts of PB&J sandwiches and then donating them directly to those in need. These efforts to ‘spread the love’ have resulted in two Guinness World Records for the most peanut butter and jelly sandwiches made in one hour.

In addition, Project PB&J results in daily food donations to communities in need across the country.

“For every peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich that is purchased at Which Wich, we donate a sandwich to someone in need in that local community and then we ‘bank’ a sandwich for large-scale areas of need,” Sinelli said. “Many of our amazing guests have taken this mission even further. We’ve seen guests buying additional sandwiches and handing them out to the homeless on their way home or on their way back to work. That partnership and sense of shared community responsibility makes this a truly special way for us to pair with our guests to give back.”

Since the founding of the Project PB&J initiative, Which Wich has donated hundreds of thousands of sandwiches to those in need, and the brand is setting its sights even higher in the years to come.

“You might see a sign at a cash register in other stores to donate a dollar to one charity or another,” said Sinelli. “And those are certainly worthy causes, too. But, it’s hard to really know what impact your donation has in those situations. Project PB&J is a real, tangible way for us to make a positive difference in people’s lives. And, in that way, we hope we’re also inspiring others to help truly make the world a better place.”