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If you have a business you have a story!

I TELL STORIES OF NEW, INTERESTING
& SUCCESSFUL BUSINESSES

by Marta Leite Castro

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Eattitude

100% healthy and nutritious granola, made for the entire family.

A family story that gave rise to this business. At its basis was the pleasure of making granola at weekends and also of offering their children a healthy option for breakfast and afternoon snack.

The homemade granola factory is based in Alcabideche, Cascais. All granolas are 100% biological, gluten-free and with no added sugar or preservatives. The couple handle all the process from preparation, following our recipes, to packaging and labeling.

What led to the creation of Eattitude?

Eattitude was started in 2011, because of our daughter Carlota. We wanted to offer her a healthy and tasty food, without sugar, palm oil, chemicals, or endless lists of ingredients. The few products that met these requirements had no flavour, so we started making granola at home which we crushed to make her a tasty, nutritious and healthy porridge. We took advantage of this and ended up making it for ourselves too. Granola became an indispensable food and we began to explore new recipes and flavours. On the weekends, the smell in our house was delicious.

I love making Christmas presents and one year we gave granola to our friends and family. It was here that we realised that we had a business opportunity in granola, because everyone loved it and the orders were pouring in. But neither Tomás nor I had time to dedicate to making granola. We had always just made it for ourselves.

When did you realize you wanted to make a business out of the granola?

A few years down the line, after another son and many kilos of granola, we were in the Azores enjoying all that beauty, and in one of those inspirational moments that leads one to question life and consider everything more and more, suddenly one of us said, “what if we made the granola?”. Everything made sense. In these moments we have the serenity and courage to leave everything that does not bring us happiness and embrace life with an inexplicable clutch and smile.

Couple, team

«We had a product in which we believed strongly and a motivation the size of the world to move forward with our family business. On the other hand, we were already used to working together, it always went very well. Tomás is a writer and I illustrate his books, “The Adventures of the Flute”. We’ve always been a good couple.

We knew we could start in the kitchen of our house. That was great! Next step: dealing with licenses and certification.»

The pillar of our granolas was, and is, the fact that they are healthy, handmade, gluten-free and delicious with few ingredients, no refined sugar, additives or preservatives. Essentially granola for the whole family, with the quality that we demand for our children. We wouldn’t “meddle” in the field. We needed to decide on flavours, do math, know the market and understand the viability of the products.

«Then came the brand. We combined Tomás’ writing, my design, our imagination and the desire for a trademark different from the universe of healthy brands that existed already. We wanted a happy, delicious, intense brand, for people who like to live life and enjoy every moment. Basically, a brand that was an extension of us, an approach to our food, to ourselves, to our family and to all those that we influence in one way or another. A sensible and conscious brand regarding health, nature; a relaxed and dynamic way of being happy.

This is how the Eattitude brand was born, along with the illustrations that reflect the personality of each of the flavours.»

How was the market entry?

With the brand now created, products closed, packaging designed, and the licenses treated, we will now present our product to the market. We took the granolas to the Dietimport group and the result of the meeting in which my heart beat as if I were in an episode of “Masterchef”, was an agreement to sell the granolas starting in January 2017, with a store: the Biomarket, followed by the others of the group, such as the Celeiro stores, as we had the production capacity.

In short, 4 months later we opened the factory, our kitchen in Alcabideche, from where almost 1 ton of granola comes out today every month.

It has been a time of hard work, a lot of learning, a lot of effort and a lot of rewards. We have 95 points of sale, we are exporting to Hong Kong (slowood.hk) and we want to continue growing, as well as our family, which already has 3 children, 2 dogs and 2 turtles that live freely in a lagoon.

What motivates you the most in this course that you have been doing?

This question, like everything in life for a person like me, can only have one answer: my motivation is above all from my children. We created these products for them, and we work every day to give them a life full of inspiration and happiness.

Then come the other factors. It is hugely exciting to create a product and see it  grow on the market. It is very exciting to receive messages of congratulations and compliments to our granolas. We are very grateful to our consumers and, especially for them, we want to keep the quality unparalleled. We look at our journey with great pride, humility and above all with a great desire to implement all the plans that have not yet been implemented. So much remains to be done!

Which is the most successful flavour?

Original is our best seller. It won a Great Taste Award and is the most “neutral” granola. Not being cocoa, coconut, pineapple or any other flavour, it goes well with everything. On the other hand, it is rich in nuts, very crunchy and has a delicious taste of honey, cinnamon and spices.

How do you find inspiration for new flavours?

We are always researching recipes and experimenting with new flavours. Our home cooking ends up being a laboratory of experiences and a source of ideas and recipes. Then we have to understand the market trends and combine all this with the viability of the ingredients, both financially and in terms of quality.

Above all, quality is our motto; we only buy certified organic ingredients (we always try to give priority to Portuguese suppliers) and Tomás is extremely careful and rigorous with regard to the quality control of raw materials, the hygiene standards of the factory and the entire production process.

Do you believe being making a big leap in the factory to cope with growth?

We really are. We have optimised the production processes and the layout of the factory in terms of new equipment and storage space. The only things that didn’t change were the recipes and the production method, which remains artisanal.

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