There isn’t any scarcity of boulangeries in Paris, Johanna Hartzheim, co-founder of bakery supply subscription firm Wildgrain, tells Entrepreneur. “It is such a cultural factor to have a contemporary baguette. You purchase a baguette daily, contemporary croissants on each nook. It is all the time heat as a result of they churn bread a lot that [every time] you go in, [it] simply got here out of the oven.”
Picture Credit score: Courtesy of Wildgrain. Johanna Hartzheim.
So, when Hartzheim and her husband and co-founder Ismail Salhi moved from France’s capital to Boston in 2015 to work on their music {hardware} firm Qleek, the native carb choices weren’t slicing it.
In contrast to Europe, the U.S. did not provide fresh-baked bread and pastries block by block. Items sat on bakery cabinets longer, and people in supermarkets typically got here with a laundry checklist of unfamiliar components, together with fillers and shelf stabilizers. “That is not proper,” Hartzheim says. “Bread ought to be flour, water and salt. That is it.”
Hartzheim had all the time liked baking, however she’d been “a bit of afraid” of bread, which comes with a singular set of challenges. Nonetheless, motivated by the shortage of decisions and desirous to eat in addition to attainable whereas pregnant with she and Salhi’s first baby, she turned to a pal’s father, who’d been making sourdough for years, for mentorship.
Quickly, she was spending each weekend studying the ins and outs of bread-baking, and it wasn’t lengthy earlier than she may produce greater than she and her household may take pleasure in.
“For sourdough, if you happen to make one loaf or 20 or 50, it is the identical quantity of labor as a result of it is the time that goes into it,” Hartzheim explains. “The evening earlier than, it’s a must to refresh the beginning, after which the following day, it’s a must to combine the dough, let it sit, after which, each hour, fold the dough. So if you happen to simply dimension up the general quantity, it would not change the period of time it takes.”
Hartzheim shared her loaves with buddies and neighbors after which began experimenting with parbaking, by which the bread is baked partially and frozen earlier than being baked the remainder of the way in which via.
“Individuals nonetheless wish to eat higher [and are] extra acutely aware about what they feed their physique.”
In 2020, the pandemic was hitting Hartzheim and Salhi’s first enterprise onerous, as in-person occasions had been one in all its largest acquisition channels. However Hartzheim noticed a chance: There was a gap in the market — the identical one which had initially impressed her to make her personal bread.
“It is so onerous [when] the closest factor you’ve gotten is a Walmart or one thing related the place you get Marvel Bread and under no circumstances good artisanal bread,” Hartzheim says, “and I believe Individuals are getting extra acutely aware about maintaining a healthy diet. It has been stylish, however folks nonetheless wish to eat higher [and are] extra acutely aware about what they feed their our bodies and provides to their youngsters. Now that I am a mom, it is essential to me what I give to my youngsters.”
The answer? Hartzheim envisioned delivery artisanal, slow-fermented bread and different baked items straight to folks’s doorways.
So, in 2020, Wildgrain got here collectively. The corporate obtained a $750,000 seed spherical verify from the enterprise agency Bolt, which had additionally invested in Hartzheim and Salhi’s earlier startup, Qleek, earlier than launch. “It took off shortly, which was sudden however nice,” Hartzheim says. “We integrated the corporate the identical week my son was born, so it was type of insanity.”
Picture Credit score: Courtesy of Wildgrain
Regardless of the chaos, Hartzheim was well-equipped to deal with the brand new enterprise. She’d been baking bread for greater than a 12 months at that time, and her buddies at ButcherBox, a Boston-based meat supply subscription firm, supplied useful recommendation concerning the subscription model. The sourdough scalability she’d found would additionally show a serious benefit.
“Most bakers weren’t keen on the concept of parbaking, of freezing bread.”
Nonetheless, like most new businesses, Wildgrain confronted some challenges alongside the way in which.
At first, the concept was to ship uncooked dough to prospects. That manner, folks may bake their bread from scratch and luxuriate in most freshness, Hartzheim explains. Sadly, many individuals struggled to efficiently bake the uncooked product, typically missing the required gear, equivalent to a Dutch oven, which mimics an expert bakery oven, trapping moisture and creating the correct puff.
“If you do not have that [equipment] and simply throw the dough on a sheet, it’ll rise weirdly and look terrible. It is quite a bit concerning the look since we promote our bread on-line,” Hartzheim says. “Individuals prefer to submit it on Instagram, and [we] work with influencers quite a bit. That is how we attain our viewers. So if it seems dangerous and simply an unsightly piece of dough, nobody shall be like, ‘Oh, that is scrumptious. Let me purchase this.'”
Moreover, Hartzheim wanted extra fingers within the kitchen if the enterprise was going to be successful. She and Salhi discovered a shared kitchen to serve that objective, however the pandemic introduced one other impediment: Solely two folks may work within the kitchen without delay.
Picture Credit score: Courtesy of Wildgrain
As luck would have it, Hartzheim’s unique bread-baking endeavor — the parbaking technique — supplied a twofold answer to the tough product providing and restricted manufacturing capability. The method would make sure that prospects baked the right loaf each time, and native bakeries may use it to extend Wildgrain’s output.
The pure subsequent step was to seek out bakeries that might be open to freezing their bread earlier than it completed baking — as it might prove, not a straightforward feat. “Most bakers weren’t keen on the concept of parbaking, of freezing bread,” Hartzheim recollects. “It type of goes in opposition to the way in which of artisanally making bread.” However with enterprise down amid the pandemic, Hartzheim satisfied them. It was “an enormous pivot level,” she says.
“So long as you are motivated and passionate, I really feel like you are able to do something.”
Wilgrain’s dynamic strategy and willingness to pivot have helped it proceed to develop over time. The corporate at present ships all over the place within the contiguous U.S., providing a no-commitment membership and customizable packing containers stuffed with frozen objects that bake in 25 minutes or much less, with no thawing required. The six-item field is priced at $99, and the 12-item field is priced at $159, each out there in plant-based choices as nicely.
Though the price-per-item value is considerably larger than would sometimes be discovered on grocery store cabinets, Hartzheim says prospects are keen to pay a premium for the better-for-you baked items — partially as a result of the pandemic’s house bread-baking fad taught folks simply how tough the method may be. The model, solely in its fourth 12 months, is incomes eight figures.
To aspiring entrepreneurs hoping to break into the food industry and past, Hartzheim says the secret’s to haven’t any worry — and to do what it takes to place your self able to succeed.
“Simply go for it as a result of it is one thing you be taught whereas doing,” Hartzheim says. “It sounds type of cliche, however so long as you are motivated and passionate, you are able to do something. I knew nothing about monitoring, importing, all these items, however it’s not rocket science. You’ll be able to be taught something or discover the fitting individuals who do know these items.”
This Girls Entrepreneur® article is a part of our ongoing collection highlighting the tales, challenges and triumphs of working a enterprise as a girl.