As our IZOLA Core team closes out week 2, we just continue to be astonished by how much we've accomplished. The team has now tested over 45 new taste combinations. Amongst these, 15 versions of croissants and 12 new sourdoughs are now moving onto phase II of testing. The tastes we're testing run the gamut - from the traditional, to combinations that make you go "What?!" and taste memories from childhood. There are flavors of sweet, pungent, puckery, salty, umami, spicy and more all being baked in our test kitchen. And we're playing with texture too from chewy, to melt-in-your-mouth, and crunchy. Much of what we test will likely end up on the chopping block, and that's good - because if we're not failing, we're not pushing hard enough. And nothing will end up on the menu that we don't absolutely love. Our offerings will continue to remain small and focused to ensure each guest receives a curated experience focused on max flavor.
WE'RE FINALLY HERE!
After 24 hours of travel, Jenny and I have finally arrived in San Sebastian, Spain, where we are kicking off a week and a half of vendor meetings.
San Sebastian is home to Salva, the manufacturer of our ovens, and now also our proofers. We'll be inspecting the equipment that we ordered for our 13th Street renovation, as well as test baking with the equipment. We'll be inspecting for dimensions (for those of you who have come in for a bakery tour know that we use every square inch of space!), ventilation, power configuration and much more. And after a (hopefully) successful inspection, the equipment will be Stateside bound, just in time for the start of our renovation! We then head to the Netherlands to tour a bakery that is running a software platform we're considering integrating for IZOLA Main. The platform will track our manufacturing process from the very start of the mixing process all the way through to the bake. It will allow us to create and manage production schedules, ensure strict quality and safety protocols are followed, manage our inventory of ingredients, and track every piece of dough we create (which will be in the 1000s of units per day). We'll also be visiting our incredible partners over at Rademaker, who will be supplying our croissant production equipment. From the Netherlands, we head to Italy, headquarters for the folks who design the software system as well as a mixing bowl manufacturer we're considering for IZOLA Main. It will be a packed trip and we're excited to share more with you next week!
LAST FEW WEEKS! This quarter's equity round closes at the end of the month! While we have raised over $1.3M from the IZOLA family already, it's still not enough...we have our 13th street reno in flight, the start of construction on IZOLA Main quickly following, as well as the equipment (and software) needed to support our triple-digit growth. So if you'd like to join us on this adventure and help support our justice-driven mission, invest now.
We will also be hosting an Investor Interest meeting on Google Meet as soon as we return from Europe. So if you'd like to learn more about our new zero-emission manufacturing facility and bake shop, IZOLA Main, or how we'll be bringing over 20 purpose-filled careers to an underserved community, join us on Monday, November 27th at 7p PST. We aim to change the way America thinks about croissants and sourdough. The IZOLA way. Hot from the oven, great hospitality, amazing quality. Justice. Investing in American Green Manufacturing. Creating careers. Improving the quality of our bread and croissants. Planning to open 12 IZOLAs in SoCal. Hard? Yes. But so exciting to invest in American manufacturing and in our community. Believe in what we do? Join us. To learn more, RSVP for our Monday call and drop by for a minute and say hi or stay the whole time. It's a fun time and super casual. Never invested before? Not to worry! It's super simple. *Please only invest an amount you would feel comfortable losing. Investing in private businesses involves risk. Though potential returns are designed to reflect that risk, there is a possibility that you will lose your entire investment.
*Please only invest an amount you would feel comfortable losing. Investing in private businesses involves risk. Though potential returns are designed to reflect that risk, there is a possibility that you will lose your entire investment.