Finally - A high-quality gluten-free bread that tastes GOOD…

Let’s be honest here. The gluten-free bread market was once a wasteland of chalky, flavorless breads, and – though flavor has improved in recent years – many questionable ingredients like gums, seed oils, and fillers have set the scene. There just isn’t a good, clean, gluten-free option out there.

Our answer to tasteless, unhealthy, hardly digestible gluten-free bread? PACHA sprouted buckwheat bread. It’s got only 2 ingredients + organic herbs and spices, and ZERO unnecessary gums, binder, fillers or harmful additives. This bread is as clean as can be, and has been heralded as “the only bread I can eat” by hundreds of satisfied customers (Not to mention the thousands more who just think it’s delicious!)

... made by a company that gives a s$%*.

At PACHA, we’re in the game for a purpose even greater than giving people food that’s actually good for their bodies. Our mission is to nourish the health of people AND our planet with nutritious food.  Our sprouted buckwheat bread is inclusive to all kinds of dieters — on top of being gluten-free and organic, our products are vegan and free of the top 9 food allergens. And we are also uncompromising in our commitment to not-just-greenwashed sustainability. We believe that by creating the kind of product and packaging people never knew they could demand, businesses like PACHA can drive real change in a broken food system. Our ingredients are sourced from regenerative farms that are taking care of our nation’s precious topsoil, and our packaging is 100% home-compostable.

We’ve made some progress since our last raise

PLUS Exciting changes coming to PACHA this year

They’re crispy. They’re addictive. They’re completely OIL-FREE and FLOUR-FREE. These PACHA crackers are a revolution for the cracker aisle. AND they’re going to be packaged in a 100% home-compostable and resealable pouch.

The best part? Expanding into a new category means even more room for PACHA to expand. The cracker industry is HUGE (8x larger than gluten-free bakery markt), and there is a ton of room for growth. PACHA crackers will be shelf stable, meaning they’ll be easier and less expensive to ship to our online customers. We’re so excited to get these crackers off the ground and into bellies nationwide – hopefully by Fall 2024 🤞

We’ve decided – due to lots of customer feedback – that we’re going to change the dimensions of our product. While the net weight will remain the same, we are shortening the length of the loaf so that the slice sizes are larger and usable for a wider range of applications. Our current loaf has 20 slices – the new loaf will have 14. We anticipate that having a sandwich-sized and -shaped slice will increase usage as customers will no longer need to buy another type of bread for their sandwiches. The change will also allow our bread to stand up on its own and fit in all grocery store shelves with the front panel facing outwards, which we anticipate will help to drive retail velocity.

We’re in the process of procuring a new packaging line. This flow-wrap machine will allow us to cut labor costs on production by more than half. The packaging itself will still be 100% home compostable, but the bag will be fully sealed. This enables us to flush the product with nitrogen to extend its shelf life and decrease freezer burn that may occur from freeze-thaw cycles in transit.

PLUS – with new packaging means a new, more cohesive look for our brand. We’re excited to bring in all these changes that will help PACHA stand out on the shelf!

Gluten-free bread is on the rise nationwide

Crafted from whole, sprouted buckwheat, PACHA is playing in the booming whole grain gluten-free bread category. Due to recent upsurges in food allergies, dietary restrictions, and a consumer shift towards healthier lifestyle choices, the gluten-free bread market is flourishing. From 2019 to 2020, the gluten free bread market grew 22%, and whole grain gluten-free bread led the way with a 32.7% leap. The gluten-free bakery industry was valued at 1.81 billion in 2022, and it is expected to grow to 4.15 billion by 2030.

Our star ingredient, Buckwheat, is on its way to culinary stardom

Move over, quinoa. There's a new superfood in town, ancient yet newly discovered: buckwheat.

According to multiple sources – including industry giants like Whole Foods – Buckwheat is trending and poised to take American kitchens by storm. They’re buzzing about its potential, praising its versatility and health benefits. Think gluten-free, protein-packed goodness with a nutty edge. 

And the health benefits? They're a whole other story. Packed with fiber, buckwheat keeps you feeling fuller for longer, aiding in weight management. Its unique protein profile boasts all nine essential amino acids, making it a complete protein source for vegetarians and flexitarians. Plus, it's chock-full of antioxidants and minerals, keeping immune systems at-the-ready.

We chose buckwheat as our start ingredient LONG before it was trendy, and we’re both creating and riding the wave of recognition it’s getting in recent years. We’re stoked to have an amazing buckwheat supply chain and an opportunity to bring delicious buckwheat-based foods to consumers across America.

We launched into Whole Foods Nationwide – and it’s going great

In October 2023, PACHA came to Whole Foods Nationwide (over 450 locations) and sales have been on an upward trend since then. In January, we ran our first on shelf promotion and saw a lift in unit sales of over 60% (we anticipated 30-40% based on industry standards), and our sales have sustained a 32% lift in the weeks since the promotion period ended. Our buyers are very pleased with the natural adoption of the brand. People are trying and buying on repeat! Did we mention that WE’RE THE ONLY ORGANIC & GLUTEN-FREE BREAD ON THE SHELVES AT WHOLE FOODS NATIONWIDE? 

Online sales are booming

PACHA began its e-commerce journey in April of 2022, which is when we completely re-built the website and overhauled our Direct to Consumer strategy. We have since scaled our online revenue to roughly $220,000/month. We acquire the majority of our new customers from Meta (Facebook) advertising, through which we are, on average, first order profitable. Our website had a 5.66% website conversion rate in Q4 of 2023, which is excellent compared to industry benchmarks which are closer to 2.5-3%. 

In the last 3 months, we have sold almost 40,000 loaves of bread through our website. A portion of those sales are from our email channel, and in the last year we've driven 30.9% of our online revenue through email campaigns.

Our business model is omnichannel, including both Direct-to-Consumer online sales and retail grocery sales through distributors. Initially our strategy was to build our brand through targeted Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) marketing and sales followed by a national retail launch in a major natural retailer. In October 2023 we completed this objective launching Whole Foods in every store in the US with 3 of our SKUs. We now have significant growth potential in both our retail and e-commerce channels. With products in distributor warehouses in every region of the country, we are poised to target both independent natural retailers and large chain accounts. To acquire customers through e-commerce, our main driver of growth has been Facebook and Instagram ads. Our data shows that we’ve captured only roughly 2% of possible impressions within our target audience demographic, meaning there is huge upside potential outside of our core existing customer base. We believe we can scale Facebook and Instagram ad spend by 5-8x and maintain existing return on ad spend. In addition to DTC and Retail we are launching a third channel in 2024 targeting food service contracts which typically have higher margins and lower costs than retail. 

Poised for profitability in 2025

PACHA is poised to significantly grow sales over the next 3 years through Direct-to-Consumer marketing, and retail sales expansion. Our growth plan predicts 289% YoY growth in 2024 and 186% YoY growth in 2025. We will achieve profitability in 2025 when we hit a gross revenue of $650K per month, which translates to 16,000 case equivalents per month. In January 2024 we sold 5,800 case equivalents. We believe that we have just begun to scratch the surface of Direct-to-Consumer demand and with Whole Foods nationwide distribution we are in a great position to expand significantly in retail; the anticipated growth in our forecast is very attainable now that we are set up for economies of scale with more efficient equipment. We just need the capitalization to give us the runway to profitability.

Forward-looking projections are not guaranteed.

This bread is good for everyone

Here at PACHA, we specialize in crafting sprouted buckwheat bread that makes your body, the planet, and your tastebuds happy. We sell 4 varieties of organic sourdough buckwheat bread — Sourdough Buckwheat Loaves in Original, Cheesy Herb, and Garlic Rye varieties as well as original Sourdough Buckwheat Buns. Our topseller and flagship product – the OG Buckwheat Loaf – is crafted from only TWO ingredients (sprouted buckwheat and sea salt). For our other flavors, we start with the buckwheat base and add some organic seasonings and herbs, like nutritional yeast and caraway seed. What is guar gum? Who cares – you won’t find it (or any other unfamiliar stuff) on our nutrition facts panels. PACHA is a new kind of bread with an emphasis on inclusivity. We are vegan, non-GMO, free of the top 9 food allergens, certified gluten-free and organic, and verified regenerative.

We choose buckwheat as the star ingredient of our bread because of its utility as a cover crop in soil-building farm practices, and we source most of our buckwheat from regenerative farms. This year, our bread became the first product EVER to obtain Soil Carbon Initiative’s Regenerative Product Verification. We source over 70% of our buckwheat from regenerative farmers in Minnesota and North & South Dakota.  On top of that, each of our products are packed in a home-compostable bread bag derived from eucalyptus and cassava. Even the clip closure is compostable – it’s made from cardboard instead of plastic 👍

This bread is the answer to so many dieters’ no-bread conundrum. But don’t just take our word for how delicious our products are— here’s some real feedback we’ve gotten from our thousands of happy customers:

Founded by beloved vegan restaurateurs and successful entrepreneurs

PACHA was founded in 2020 as a joint venture between Boochcraft co-founder Adam Hiner, his wife Maddie Hamann, and a team of local vegan restaurateurs: Trilogy Sanctuary LLC. Trilogy is a beloved rooftop cafe and yoga space in San Diego – one of the only 100% organic eateries in town with an award-winning Vegan / Gluten-Free menu. Because they couldn’t find a reliable, high-quality gluten-free bread option, Trilogy used funds from its successful high-volume business model to get PACHA off the ground, and Trilogy became PACHA’s primary investor. Its owners (Joe Caldera, Leila Caldera, Will Buttner, and Brooke Flynn) sit on PACHA’s board of directors to advise and assist with business development and raising capital.

Day-to-day administration, executive tasks, and marketing teams are managed by husband and wife duo Adam & Maddie, while Maddie’s brother Thomas manages the production team…which also includes a three families in its employ! PACHA is truly a family business, and we like it that way. It’s part of the reason we aren’t looking to raise all this money from some faceless VC!

Our family-run business is a great place to work. We pay 25% above minimum wage, and our employee retention rate is very high because we emphasize and value creating a workplace that supports our employees. 

PACHA checks all the boxes

Across the board, PACHA checks all the boxes, while our closest competitors fall short. We are the ONLY* gluten-free bread on the market that is certified organic, sprouted, vegan, nut-free, binder-free, PUFA-free, sugar-free, and packaged without plastic; as a result, we appeal to and convert a wide variety of consumer segments, unlike many of our competitors. We are bread for the people who – like our founders – had given up on having bread in their diets. We are a product for people who cringe when they have to throw plastic bags into the trash. We’re revolutionizing the gluten-free bread realm, and we are proud to bake healthier, yummier bread for all.

*Based on a comparison of the top 6 gluten-free bread competitors that we find are most comparable to our brand and market.

Here's where you come in..

PACHA is opening up a second round of  investment here on Wefunder so that the many supporters of our product can be a part of its success and reap the benefits. We are selling ownership units of the LLC at $11 per unit, with a post-money valuation of $11.2 Million.

The money from this round of investment will primarily be used to double down on marketing efforts to expand online and retail sales ($420k). Some will be put towards packaging line improvements ($100k), and some towards innovation on the PACHA cracker line ($100k).

We’re so excited about all of the growth, innovation, and good work PACHA is doing right now. Your investment will help us to continue our takeover of the gluten-free aisle, fueling America with nutritious food that is good for the planet. Join us!