Challenge Accepted: Brazi Bites Launches TikTok Inspired Waffles

Having found room to create a burgeoning platform brand within the frozen food set, Brazi Bites now has its sights set on breakfast. .

Available in Cheesy, Homestyle and Blueberry, the brand’s new gluten-free frozen waffles will roll out next month in Sprouts, with each two waffle serving containing 5-9 grams of protein. Co-founder and CMO Junea Rocha said the brand believes its Cheesy waffle will be the first savory frozen waffle with national distribution.

Founded in 2010 by Rocha and Cameron MacMullin, Brazi is perhaps best known for its signature Brazilian-style cheese bread (pao de queijo). The company has since grown the product line to incorporate new flavors like Garlic Asiago and Ranch, while also launching Pizza Bites and Empanadas that utilize a modified version of the cheesebread’s tapioca-based dough. The waffles are made with a thinner version of the tapioca dough that works in a waffle iron.

Rocha credited the product’s inspiration to the brand’s consumers, who were posting social media videos pressing Brazi’s cheese bread into a waffle irons as part of the #WillItWaffle social media trend; on TikTok alone the hashtag has over 252 million views. Brazi has previously used social media to crowdsource innovation: earlier this year it launched an Everything cheese bread after holding an online vote. That flavor proved so popular, Rocha said, it became a permanent addition to the lineup and will launch in Whole Foods nationwide this month.

Recognizing that frozen breakfast, and waffles in particular, is a “super developed category,” Rocha admits to asking “do we belong there?” There are also other savory gluten-free brands making the jump as well, with Banza launching a line of chickpea-based waffles in Whole Foods nationwide. But after speaking with retail buyers, she said, it became clear that there was still a hole in the market for a high protein waffle that tasted like a more traditional option.

“Through [our] research, we uncovered that there are no savory waffles in the market, period. So that’s a pioneering innovation,” Rocha said. “And then we started tasting all the gluten-free waffles in the market and felt that they didn’t deliver on taste, they were lacking. And what our brand does best is delivering on taste.”

The waffles will be in Sprouts exclusively for the next several months, before moving into other retailers. However, Rocha said, Brazi is planning for a “thoughtful” expansion, planning to launch in a limited number of retailers until it has achieved proof of concept.

While waffles are new for the company, this actually isn’t its first run at a breakfast product. The company previously launched a line of microwavable, gluten-free breakfast sandwiches inspired by queijo-quente, the Brazilian take on grilled cheese. That line is being discontinued in place of the waffles, with Rocha citing inflation and price increases as a reason behind the move.The soaring price of eggs over the last year, along with high costs related to its paper crisping sleeve packaging, made the product unsustainable.

When you have high ingredient costs, such as with a gluten-free item, combined with a manual manufacturing process, Rocha said, the price point simply gets too high. The waffles can be made on existing equipment, so while the sandwiches were roughly $4.99 each, the waffles come in a six count box for $5.99.

Along with that discontinuation, the brand also culled some of the lower performing SKUs of its Cheese Bread and Empanadas.

“As we look at our portfolio and try to focus on things that are much more productive and are optimized, [especially] as we emerge from this challenging time in our industry, that product line just didn’t make sense to continue,” said Rocha. “We’re looking at ‘what is the future? What’s the path for growth for us to have a sustainable business that works?’ [The sandwich] didn’t make the cut.”

Going forward, Rocha said, the company will focus on products that meet three criteria: a concept rooted in consumer insight,; strong retail buyer interest, and a strong manufacturing partner. While the former can drive sales, she acknowledged, if the latter does not exist as well, there’s no way to meet product demand.

Along with the waffle launch, Brazi is also opening up applications for the second cohort of its Latino Entrepreneur Accelerator Program (LEAP), which offers Latino founders mentorship services as well as the potential to win a $10,000 cash prize.

“[LEAP] was very successful last year on all levels. The interest from entrepreneurs was overwhelming,” Rocha said. “[This year] we were like, ‘oh my god, we’re launching waffles, but we have to do it.’ So yeah, we’re rolling up her sleeves, and we’re doing it all.”