It feels like a film script. A homosexual entrepreneur in Guatemala launches a cookie firm in 2012 from his mother’s kitchen. He meets one other Guatemalan entrepreneur, additionally homosexual, who joins the enterprise. They get married, immigrate in 2019 to the U.S., and, overcoming a slew of obstacles, relaunch the corporate from their base in Austin, Texas, attaining success.
The corporate is known as Wunderkeks. The entrepreneurs are founder Hans Schrei and his co-owner husband, Luis Gramajo.
I not too long ago spoke with them. Our dialog addressed far more than promoting cookies.
Your complete audio of that interview is embedded under. The transcript is edited for readability and condensed.
Eric Bandholz: Inform us about Wunderkeks.
Hans Schrei: In December 2011 I used to be residing in my residence nation of Guatemala. I had 30 days of break day from my job, so I made a decision to bake one sort of cookie from my mother’s kitchen for on daily basis of Creation. By day 18, I had a thousand cookies. These turned my Christmas presents that yr. Then of us started telling me, “It’s best to promote these.”
That was the beginning of Wunderkeks. The identify means “marvel cookies” in German. It took some time to achieve success, and it was loads for me to deal with. A number of years later I met Luis. His background was in advertising and marketing. I used to be about to throw within the towel, however he got here in and helped. Over time, we obtained our cookie dough in Costco and Walmart in Latin America.
Beginning Wunderkeks was my inventive outlet and a option to categorical myself, which I couldn’t do as a result of being homosexual in Guatemala will not be splendid. I constructed a pink field and obtained behind the counter, promoting my cookies at our bodily retailer. It turned therapeutic and a part of my id. I’m not outgoing, however the enterprise was a superb alternative to speak to individuals. Individuals can really feel your ardour when speaking about your model, offering credibility.
My relationship with Luis developed. He too is homosexual. We turned engaged. However getting married in Guatemala was not going to occur. So we traveled to California. We drove alongside the coast from San Diego to San Francisco. We noticed queer {couples} with children in every single place. That, for us, was very new and refreshing.
In order that’s why we determined to immigrate to the U.S. We selected Austin, Texas. We bought the whole lot in Guatemala, loaded up our canine and two suitcases, and began doing farmers’ markets right here promoting our cookies.
Luis Gramajo: I’ve been good at promoting since I used to be a child. Hans loves analyzing and researching. We work effectively collectively as a result of we’re the other in our qualities. I’m a individuals one that loves making connections and promoting. Hans loves numbers. If you combine these two, you begin trusting one another. The secret’s realizing your limitations and strengths.
Bandholz: Your cookies had been an enormous success right here in Austin.
Gramajo: Sure. Our backgrounds are in retail. Hans used to work for Procter & Gamble. I labored for Beiersdorf, the skincare firm. We had been model managers for these companies in Latin America. We knew methods to meet our gross sales targets and methods to discover a chance.
Schrei: Many individuals don’t perceive {that a} new product wants pushing. Usually the expectation is, “I’ll have my product on the cabinets, and everyone seems to be gonna be excited to purchase it.” That doesn’t occur. Irrespective of how good your show is, it’s about selling and speaking concerning the product, its profit, and what it can do for individuals. That’s why we began at a farmer’s market as a result of we had simply moved to the U.S. It was our enterprise, and we would have liked the earnings, nevertheless it was additionally a chance to speak to individuals one-on-one. That’s very straightforward to go away behind as you develop, nevertheless it has been a important a part of our branding.
Our large break got here in March 2020. We had baked 25,000 cookies to organize for the South-by-Southwest competition. But it surely obtained canceled resulting from Covid. So there we had been, caught with a ton of cookies. Fortunately the actress Busy Phillips heard about our state of affairs and tweeted about it to her 2.2 million Twitter followers. In a single day we obtained a whole bunch of orders.
Covid pressured us to emphasise on-line gross sales. So the long-term impact was optimistic. We have now a Shopify retailer and ship our cookies worldwide from our bakery right here in Austin.
Bandholz: You immigrated to the U.S. and opened a enterprise. What’s the course of?
Schrei: It’s tough as a result of the immigration system is advanced and archaic. The U.S. has restricted views of who can completely reside right here. In our case, the one motive that we might come was as a result of I’ve an Austrian passport. That’s an extended story. However I’ve an Austrian passport, which allowed me to request an entrepreneur visa. Solely about 35 international locations, primarily in Europe, have that association with the U.S. And that visa requires an undefined “vital funding.” It’s a mushy quantity. We invested $100,000.
Gramajo: It helped that we had a superb relationship with the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala. Plus our enterprise had a superb repute there.
Schrei: Proper. However typically, the system could be very archaic. If we didn’t have my Austrian passport, our visa utility would have probably been rejected. Plus, Luis and I had been married, which helped along with his state of affairs.
Gramajo: All of it occurred shortly in 2018. We did that highway journey in California in April and had a number of extra U.S. visits later. Then we utilized for the visa in Guatemala in July and obtained approval in September. And in January 2019 we moved to Austin.
Schrei: We obtained married in Austin that earlier July 2018. To obtain the visa, it was simpler to be married earlier than making use of than afterward.
Gramajo: Hans loves studying and doing analysis. He put collectively a whole bunch of pages we needed to current to the U.S. Embassy.
Schrei: There have been so many particulars. We needed to display our firm was arrange and that the $100,000 was in danger. Getting established within the U.S. — banks, taxes, rules — is far simpler with a social safety quantity. Fortunately Luis had one from working in New York for a yr.
It’s all doable however, once more, very advanced.
Bandholz: A homosexual, married couple from Guatemala immigrated to the U.S., opened a enterprise, employed workers, and located success. What a narrative.
Gramajo: Our mission goes past enterprise. We wish to construct protected areas for everybody — homosexual, straight, minority, white. Wunderkeks was within the closet in Guatemala. After we got here right here, the whole lot occurred organically. The model developed with out us even noticing. A yr and a half after transferring to the U.S., we realized our model is queer.
In order that has grow to be our mission — making the world a greater place by means of cultural change, having conversations, and offering a protected area for everyone.
We wish to develop the corporate, too. We’ve simply launched a crowdfunding elevate on Republic.
Bandholz: How can listeners join with you?
Schrei: Our web site is Wunderkeks.com. The enterprise is on Twitter, Fb, and Instagram. I’m on LinkedIn.
Gramajo: I’m on LinkedIn, too.
