#8 Viva Brasilia. Junea Rocha, Brazi Bites
Pretty straightforward beginning, Junea Rocha and her husband decided to bring their Brazilian cheese bread to the US market in 2011. But nothing stays straightforward. Junea went to Oregon State University's Food Innovation Center's "Recipe to Market" class that gave them a big boost developing a product to show to a buyer in 12 weeks. They were excited with their start, but it was a full year to have a product ready for market. They developed it through Kitchen Crew a community commissary. But full production required eventually opeing their own facility until they got to a volume that's landed them with a co-packer - the complete evolution! Frozen AND gluten-free made the journey difficult because it was a unique category at the time, so these pioneers opened the door for many entrepreneurs with the passion for good food and good taste. But what's it like to be husband and wife running the same company? Sometimes have been really intense getting things off the ground, but the rewards of reaching their goals has been a great business and personal partnership.