We recently connected with BRUNA Piaui Graf and have shared our conversation below.
BRUNA, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
In Brazil,Pão de Queijo or Cheese bread, is very popular. When I was growing up in Bauru, Brazil, my favorite place to go with my family and friends was a restaurant which served delicious sandwiches on Cheese bread.
When I moved to the U.S., I desperately missed my cheese bread, and I had a hard time finding it in the grocery’s stores. In 2017 I started working in a Brazilian steak house as a server where they serve Brazilian cheese bread as an appetizer. I noticed that customers would go crazy for cheese bread. Most of the time they would ask me for cheese bread TO-GO.
That’s when the idea of Bruna’s Brazilian Cheese Bread was born.
2019 I decided to start a food truck serving sandwiches on the authentic Brazilian cheese bread. 2020 when the Covid hit I had to change the business model to CPG where I provide Gluten -Free Frozen Brazilian cheese bread ready to bake.
I am focusing on providing my local customers with our handcrafted nutritious, delicious authentic Brazilian Cheese Bread . My mission is to serve the community and with the belief that all everyone should be empowered to reach their dream.
BRUNA, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
We help families with Gluten free intolerance or even those who are looking for something quick , easy , nutritious and most important delicious by having our Freezer to oven served to their table. We differentiate ourselves by making our Brazilian cheese bread handcrafted and in small batches for the real Brazilian cheese bread experience . I am so proud that Bruna’s cheese bread was founded and are helping gluten free folks love bread with no gluten again .
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
We started the business in 2019. When Covid hit ” give up” was not an option for me. I switched the business model to not let Bruna’s cheese bread disappear and I am glad I did because of this decision our company are able to help a lot families with celiac disease.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
When I decided to start the business I had around $4-5k saved in my bank account. I did not have money to buy a food truck . I went to crag list and started calling everyone that was selling a food truck and started asking who was open to rent instead of selling . I swear , I called every single number and all my answers was NO. On the last one that pop up on my computer this person decided to rent it to me, which was a miracle . After that I was able to get a small loan to use as cash flow.
Contact Info:
Website: https://brunasbread.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brunascheesebread/
Facebook: @brunascheesebread
Suggest a Story: CanvasRebel is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.