We sold our home and hit the road. A year of nomadic trail riding showed us how much we loved our Overland Kitchen.
We loved it so much we bought the company!
- Julie & Chris Ellsworth
About our products
Photo Credit: Gabriel Harber
Our kitchens are designed and manufactured in North America. Designed by an overland loving adventurer for his own rig, we have kitchens that can fit in most utility vehicles. Not only is all your cooking gear and food at your fingertips for instant meals, it provides you with lots of room for more gear! Simply strap down the kitchen and pack it full of anything you like!
Our uniquely designed kitchens are constructed with beefy hardware, and laser cut food grade #304 stainless steel for construction. This means durability, silent components while driving and maximized use of space for convenient access to your gear.
The three-part pull-out design leaves a deep main space for cooking pots and dishes, a flat cutting / prep-surface, and a stove platform which all roll out like a counter top kitchen in a high end restaurant.
Our goal as a family run business is to create products that make getting out on adventures more accessible. We are in the midst of an off-road family odyssey of our own and relishing the flood of new experiences that come with it.
Departing from our comfort zones and stepping into the wild unknown, we learned and grew more than we could have imagined. Family time became centered around simple moments like playing in a stream, studying the map and sharing a meal. Just as the kitchen had always been the heart of our traditional home, and the warmest place everyone gravitated to, the same was true of our kitchen on wheels. We knew we wanted to continue making these family memories on the trail and somehow share the spirit of adventure with others. We are proud to continue what Alan Smith began on that journey years ago.
About Our business
Every great story starts with an adventure…
The year was 2015 and Alan Smith and his pal were in the midst of exploring the rugged wilderness of British Columbia during a photo expedition to the Arctic Circle. During that trip, one thing became clear: trail challenges are exhilarating, but cooking challenges, especially in -15 Celsius (5 Fahrenheit) environments, less so.
Upon returning from that trip, he considered future trips with family and the uncomfortably cold times while waiting for food or loading and unloading his fridge and stove. He began to dream of a solution for making quicker meals while maximizing storage space so that all the gear was easier to get at and took far less effort to re-pack.
He designed the kitchen system he wished he’d had, then began putting it to the test on those family adventures. Since then, Overland Kitchen products have served hundreds of fellow adventurers bringing joy to their overland cooking experience. In fact, one of those customers loved it so much that in 2023 they bought the business!
Meet the Team
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Chris Ellsworth
Co-Owner and Head of Product
As the CEO of Overland Kitchen, Chris Ellsworth brings a wealth of experience from over a decade in the Aerospace industry. Formerly an engineer and program manager, Chris led groundbreaking research and development efforts, earning multiple patents and assuming leadership roles over large interdisciplinary product development teams. Known for pioneering agile program management techniques tailored to each project, Chris has a reputation for spearheading rapid and high-tech product development with a focus on speed to market. Inspired by a childhood spent backpacking and years of full-time travel with family, Chris and the family transitioned to a vehicle-based nomadic lifestyle. Overland Kitchen embodies this spirit as a location-independent business, allowing Chris and family to explore the world cooking homemade meals from the road using our own Overland Kitchens on a daily basis.
Chris's early connection to overlanding, rooted in childhood adventures and years of full-time travel, fuels his passion for creating products that resonate with the overlanding community.
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Julie Ellsworth
Co-Owner and Creative Marketing Director
Julie, channels her artistic flair into branding and marketing initiatives. With a background in fine art and graphic design, Julie is the driving force behind the visual identity that sets Overland Kitchen apart. Beyond the creative realm, Julie seamlessly leads various business operations initiatives enabling smooth operation of our endeavors. Coming from generations of home cooks and raised on childhood camping adventures, she understands the essence of a good meal on the road. Inspired by her own nomadic lifestyle, Overland Kitchen is Julie’s way of sharing the joy of home-cooked meals during travels.
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Carrie Yoder
Digital Support Specialist
Carrie got her start in the digital nomad space, maintaining a travel website with her husband that quickly grew into a successful brand and business with over 25,000 subscribers. She designed and maintained this site for more than five years until she and her husband sold it to a large travel brand in 2019. She now uses the skills she learned from that experience to help other small businesses succeed online. She joined the Overland Kitchen team in 2023 with this very goal.
Carrie has been a digital nomad for most of her adult life, visiting more than 60 countries living out of hotels, Airbnbs, and of course the occasional tent.
Photo Credit: Gabriel Harber
