The 2026 recognition marks Hatching Time’s fourth consecutive appearance on the Inc. 5000.
When Hatching Time first appeared on the Inc. 5000 in 2023, it was a milestone worth celebrating. Our place on the 2026 Inc. 5000 list gives us another reason to pause and say “thank you.”
That makes four consecutive appearances, an achievement that means a great deal to us.
Behind those four appearances are backyard keepers and homesteaders, breeders and hatcheries, farms, schools, universities, and research teams that chose our equipment and shared their experiences with us. There are also customers who called with questions, sent photos, or told us where we could do better; affiliates, retailers, distributors, and industry partners who introduced Hatching Time to new communities; and team members who kept products moving and customer conversations personal as the company grew.
“Our customers are everything. They are the reason why we keep innovating and finding the best solutions for the future of their flocks.”
Growing With the Community
People come to Hatching Time with very different levels of experience, and often with completely different goals.
One person may be preparing for a first hatch and need clear guidance to know the incubator is set up correctly. Another may be a breeder managing several hatch cycles and looking for consistency from one hatch to the next. A farm or hatchery may need systems that fit into an established routine and can keep up with the daily workload. A school may be using poultry care to make learning more concrete. For example, at P177Q in Queens, students with disabilities practice communication, responsibility, teamwork, and independence through the daily work of caring for chickens. This is why we do what we do.
Serving that collective group of individuals well has changed how we think about growth. A larger catalog is useful only when people can make sense of it. Better availability matters when a replacement part is needed during a hatch. Support matters most when a question is immediate and the answer affects what happens next.
As more people have found Hatching Time, their questions and feedback have shaped the products we carry, the guides we publish, and the way our team explains the differences between one setup and another.
More Room, More Ways to Help
Hatching Time began as a family business in 2018. As our product range and customer base grew, the business needed more room to hold inventory, fulfill orders, demonstrate equipment, and support customers in person.
By 2025, our 27,000-square-foot distribution center in New Castle, Delaware, included a 3,000-square-foot showroom. The larger space helps us keep more equipment and parts available. The showroom gives customers a place to see incubators, brooders, cage systems, coops, and processing equipment in person, ask questions, and plan a setup with our team.
We also found new ways to reach and support poultry keepers. Our work with Jarvis Canada began in 2023, making our equipment easier to access in Canada. In early 2025, we acquired The Bug Factory brand from UK startup BeoBia, adding modular mealworm-growing kits that turn food scraps into feed and fertilizer.
One brought us closer to Canadian customers. The other gave poultry keepers another way to produce feed at home while making use of food scraps.
“One of the biggest things we learned was to find really good people to work with. Whether that be new team mates, new business partners across the globe or new vendors that we distribute for, one thing that always stays true is we have a tight circle of really good genuine people now.”
What We Are Building Next
The growth behind this year’s Inc. 5000 appearance covers the period through the end of 2025. Since then, Hatching Time has continued moving into new markets, retail channels, and areas of animal care.
In 2026, we opened our UK online store with distribution support in Ireland and expanded product availability through Chewy. Both moves bring Hatching Time closer to customers who may not previously have had a practical way to buy from us.
That same year, we launched Oldfield Pets, a pet wellness brand offering 100% natural treats, chews, and supplements for dogs and cats. The idea came from something we already knew about our community: many poultry keepers also share their homes with dogs and cats, and they care just as much about what goes into their food and treats.
Reaching more people also means understanding how their expectations differ. Product availability, delivery, documentation, and support all have to work across new channels and markets.
We want someone discovering Hatching Time through Chewy or our UK store to receive the same clear information and responsive help as a customer visiting our Delaware showroom.
“We seek to bring our solutions globally, providing access to quality equipment and reliable support anywhere in the world.”
Four Years in a Row
The Inc. 5000 records the growth behind us. Our attention is now on what that growth allows us to do: develop better equipment, make it easier to access, and remain close enough to poultry keepers to understand what they need from us next.
This recognition also belongs to our team. Thank you to everyone who answered a customer’s question, solved a problem, packed an order, supported a partner, improved a process, or stepped in when something needed to get done. Growing quickly creates pressure in places the outside world rarely sees, and reaching the Inc. 5000 four years in a row would not have been possible without your care, patience, and daily work.
Four consecutive appearances are worth celebrating. What matters now is how we use the opportunity they represent and whether we can keep growing without losing the closeness, practical thinking, and personal responsibility that brought Hatching Time this far.
View Hatching Time’s complete Inc. profile or visit our In the News page for more company updates and coverage.
