Some know the Munich startup from “Die Höhle der Löwen” (DHDL), others now also from the chip shelf in the supermarket: myCHIPSBOX. Since 2014, the founders Ebru and Erol Kaynak have built their company with passion and success. They were recently awarded the Munich Founders' Prize.
The startup offers chip lovers product innovations featuring air-dried vegetables like carrots and beets, or pieces of fruit. They're organic, vegan, gluten-free, and made entirely without artificial flavors or flavor enhancers.
We spoke with founder Erol about risk, success, mistakes and, of course, chips on the coffee table at home.
You both quit your jobs to fully focus on your startup idea. Didn't the risk and hurdles of self-employment scare you away?
Courage and a willingness to take risks are part of it, but so is complete conviction in the product and the idea. We had highly paid jobs; I was in investment banking, and my wife was most recently at Nestlé. That was quite a leap.
“Courage and willingness to take risks are part of it”
A major milestone was your appearance on DHDL. How did you prepare for the pitch?
Of course, we prepared thoroughly for DHDL and asked ourselves questions like: What makes our products stand out and why is an investment worthwhile for the lions? However, we didn't watch previous episodes of other participants because we didn't want to get carried away and wanted to remain as authentic as possible. In the end, it paid off, and we even got two great deals!
And what happened after the show aired? You had foresightedly pre-produced a huge number of chip boxes—but were you prepared for such a huge success?
We knew that our appearance on DHDL would bring us more attention than before and that it represented a huge opportunity for us. After all, millions of viewers watch the show every week. But we didn't expect demand to skyrocket so dramatically.
“We didn’t expect that”
Our stocks were sold out within a very short time. The biggest challenge for us was sourcing raw materials for production, as our products use only raw materials from certified organic farming, and unfortunately, there is less land available for cultivation than in the conventional raw material sector.
What is the most challenging issue for you right now?
One challenge lies in driving the professionalization process forward across all areas of the startup. We are also working on further rolling out sales and coordinating the supply chain.
“Believe in your idea!”
And what do you think is the decisive factor for successful company development?
Fundamentally, you should believe in your business idea. You need energy and perseverance to establish your product and your company. Furthermore, the business must be scalable. This means you need to keep a close eye on both the big picture and individual processes, and continually reflect critically to be able to make adjustments if necessary – from the manufacturing process to sales and customer relationship management.
The team must also have the appropriate skills. For us, successful and healthy company development depends on more than just one factor.
As we all know, mistakes are always the best way to learn – which mistake did you learn the most from?
At the very beginning, we had a stronger focus on e-commerce. However, we quickly realized that scaling an impulse product like potato chips requires a lot of effort and money. We quickly shifted our focus to brick-and-mortar grocery stores.
“Don’t forget family, friends and relaxation”
What advice do you give to other founders?
Only do it if you're fully committed to your startup idea. Especially in the beginning, there are many hurdles and setbacks that will challenge you. Bring courage and flexibility – especially during the development process, adjustments to your business model may become necessary. Work hard and be persistent; this is the only way to get closer to your goal.
Last but not least: Despite all the work, don't forget important things like family, friends, and relaxation in your life. Without them, long-term success would be impossible.
What's it like to start a business as a married couple? And how do you manage to stop talking about business during a cozy evening on the sofa?
Without my wife Ebru, myCHIPSBOX wouldn't exist. We came up with the idea while shopping in the supermarket, standing in front of the chip aisle and finding none of the products appealing. The ingredient lists were riddled with artificial additives and MSG, and the recipes weren't very convincing. That was the impetus for us to venture into the snack market with our own business. We said to ourselves: If we're going to snack, do it right! With high-quality ingredients and sophisticated recipes that taste great – completely free of MSG and the like.
As a trained food technologist and nutritionist, Ebru brings food expertise and is responsible for product development and quality management within the company. As a business graduate, I'm responsible for business development, marketing, finance, and sales. The division of labor works quite well.
We like to use the valuable private time we have to see family and friends — so it's not difficult for us to talk about things other than business.
Last but not least: Do you still have chips on your coffee table?
Of course! All of the products we offer have to pass our personal taste test first. This means: We don't offer anything that we don't personally believe in. We still enjoy all the varieties in the myCHIPSBOX range today – at least as much as the day we launched them.
