Luisella: Not a Nutty Business

Highlights

• 50% ingredient cost savings 
• A slam dunk success!

Situation

Patricia Di Chiara, a graduate from the entrepreneurial program at Georgian College in Barrie, Ontario, won a prize for her business plan for a new kind of chocolate spread. After reading an article about it, we reached out to her. The mother of two and recent émigré from Italy let us sample her product, which was delicious.

Months before, Patricia had sent her kids to school with Nutella on bread, as she would do in Italy, and got a letter back from the Principal. Naturally, she went looking for a replacement product, with no success. Bingo! The idea behind Luisella Chocolate Spread was born.

Patricia is also a chef, so with some experimentation, she whipped up a batch made with sunflower butter. Luisella is not only nut-free but also palm kernel oil-free, so it’s more nutritious and better for the environment. With a winning recipe in hand, Patricia set out to source ingredients. She first sourced ingredients through a food services distributor that the College used, which was expensive.

Solution

When The Greater Goods came on board, we were able to source ingredients and reduce costs by approximately 50%. We source all the raw materials, negotiate pricing with the vendors, and forecast availability and pricing to safeguard production. 

We also helped with the formulation. Patricia was using real chocolate for the recipe, which tasted fantastic. But nut butter and chocolate have different types of fat, which tend to separate and cause blooming (a white colouration). So we brought in a food science consultant who solved that problem.

Next, we helped sort out manufacturing. Patricia had found her own manufacturer, but after a few conversations, the manufacturer admitted they were not willing to make the necessary
investments in their production line. Leveraging our network, we found a manufacturer who was a perfect fit and very cost-effective. 

 
For sales, we connected Patricia with an international broker to export, and are helping her to get ready for a big-box retailer in Canada & the US 

Results

Production has begun and sales are clipping along briskly. The ingredient supply chain is secure and costs are low. The manufacturer is performing swimmingly.