Meet the People Helping Lead NBBQA Forward

Kell Phelps
Managing Partner, National Barbecue & Grilling Association (NBBQA)
Publisher, Barbecue News Magazine

Kell Phelps has spent his life surrounded by barbecue, storytelling, and the people who make this industry special. As Managing Partner of the National Barbecue & Grilling Association and Publisher of Barbecue News Magazine, Kell brings decades of experience, deep family roots, and a genuine heart for helping people succeed.

Kell’s connection to the barbecue world began at a young age. His father, Joe Phelps, was a founding member and former president of NBBQA and introduced Kell to the people, traditions, and live-fire cooking culture that would shape his future.

In 2002, Kell took the reins of Barbecue News Magazine, which his father founded in 1990 as a newsletter. Under Kell’s leadership, the publication grew into one of the most trusted and recognized voices in barbecue — serving backyard cooks, competition teams, restaurants, caterers, product makers, manufacturers, retailers, and BBQ fans across the country and beyond.

Through Barbecue News Magazine, Kell has helped shine a light on small businesses, industry legends, rising stars, family-owned restaurants, product makers, pitmasters, and the stories that keep barbecue moving forward.

In 2022, Kell and his wife, Janet, took ownership of the National Barbecue & Grilling Association and began leading the organization into a new chapter. Their work has focused on preserving NBBQA’s long-standing mission of education, networking, and community while expanding opportunities through member resources, Special Interest Groups, digital access, live-fire events, industry partnerships, and national programs.

Kell is widely respected for his approachable leadership style and his simple but powerful belief:

“We just want to help people.”

That spirit guides his work every day — whether he is mentoring a young pitmaster, helping a product maker find direction, connecting a sponsor with the right opportunity, emceeing an event, editing a feature story, or shaking hands with friends across the BBQ trail.

Today, Kell continues to serve the barbecue and grilling industry from Douglas, Georgia, where he and Janet work side by side to grow NBBQA, publish Barbecue News Magazine, support Future of Q, and celebrate the people who make the BBQ community so special.

Janet Phelps
Managing Partner, National Barbecue & Grilling Association (NBBQA)
Office Manager, Barbecue News Magazine

For Janet Phelps, barbecue is more than business. It is community, connection, service, and a calling to support the people who give so much of themselves to this industry.

As Managing Partner of the National Barbecue & Grilling Association and Barbecue News Magazine, Janet plays a key role in helping guide the organization’s growth, communications, events, member services, and day-to-day operations.

Janet’s path into barbecue began in 2006 with a simple article request from a college friend. That request introduced her to Kell Phelps, the owner and publisher of Barbecue News Magazine, who would later become her husband and business partner.

Before joining the barbecue world full-time, Janet built a professional background in insurance, customer service, and operations. That experience gave her a strong foundation in organization, communication, problem-solving, and service — skills she now uses every day to support NBBQA members, advertisers, partners, and programs.

Janet has been deeply involved in the continued development of NBBQA, including serving as Board Secretary in 2021 and 2022. Her work has included governance support, event planning, fundraising, communications, sponsor coordination, logistics, member outreach, and behind-the-scenes organization for major industry gatherings.

Whether she is managing communications, helping coordinate an event, organizing an auction, assisting a member, supporting a sponsor, or making sure details do not fall through the cracks, Janet brings both professionalism and heart to the work.

At Barbecue News Magazine, Janet helps ensure that readers, advertisers, restaurant owners, product makers, and industry partners receive thoughtful and timely support. She is also a strong advocate for Future of Q Magazine, a youth-focused outdoor cooking publication created to encourage, celebrate, and support the next generation of pitmasters, cooks, storytellers, and barbecue leaders.

Janet is grateful for the opportunity to serve a community filled with hardworking business owners, passionate cooks, creative entrepreneurs, loyal fans, and people who believe in helping one another.

Kell and Janet live in Douglas, Georgia, where they work together to support NBBQA, Barbecue News Magazine, Future of Q, and the larger barbecue family they are blessed to serve.

Leading with Service, Community, and Purpose

Kell and Janet believe NBBQA’s strength comes from its people — the restaurant owners, caterers, product makers, competitors, manufacturers, suppliers, sponsors, educators, backyard cooks, BBQ fans, and industry partners who keep barbecue moving forward.

Their leadership is rooted in the belief that NBBQA should be a place where people can find help, make connections, learn from others, grow their businesses, and feel like they are part of something bigger than themselves.

Together, they are committed to honoring the history of NBBQA while building a stronger future for the barbecue and grilling community.

NBBQA is where barbecue connects, learns, grows, and leads — together.