Well & Good: Woolies deal makes dad ‘a legend' at 50
Sam Barak started allergen-free food company Well & Good in his garage in Melbourne back in 2005 after discovering a family friend's child had been diagnosed with coeliac disease and had very limited food options.
Approximately 1 in 70 Australians are estimated to have coeliac disease.
Today the condition appears to be more common, though it's likely that is due to a combination of increased awareness and better diagnostic testing.
Mr Barak it seems was ahead of the game, forging a food brand that created products for those who unable to eat everyday ingredients because of allergies and special dietary needs.
'He turned our family garage into a test lab kitchen, he put a sink in and some plumbing. He was a food developer and had worked in the industry a long time,' his daughter Shila, who is the brand's business development manager, told news.com.au.
'All the stars aligned.'
The then 50-year-old dad started the gluten free business, and was 'made fun of' by his children for the idea. But, in the last 20 years, all three have been employed by the booming business as it catering for those with allergies soared in demand.
The business employs 30 staff, has its own manufacturing bakery in Bayside and has been available in supermarkets such as Woolworths since just before Covid.
Landing the huge supermarket deal has opened a whole new door for the business and allowed more people to access its product range.
Kati Keksi, who runs Your Gluten Free Guide, regularly shares news of new gluten free products in Australian supermarkets.
She's recently shared the fact that Woolworths now stocks Well & Good's Rustic Ciabatta, Soft White Roll and Pizza Flour Mix.
Social media users were quick to share an outpouring of love for the brand.
'Pizza mix is fantastic. And I've used the bread mix for pizza too,' one said.
One added: 'The lemon coconut cake is delicious!!'
'I have got the pizza mix at my local Woolies the last two weeks. I forgot I brought it last week to try it and brought it again this week. Well I guess I am well stocked for a while,' one shared.
One said: 'Yeah hotdog buns or just long buns would be great.'
'We regularly order this brand online. They are quick and reasonably priced if you buy in bulk,' one said.
One commented: 'What in the world is going on New items coming left and right Love it! and freeze.'
'I just talked to my family about what am I going to do when I have soup and I want bread to dip … I made soup yesterday and I now see this HAHAHA happy for the gf community, not happy this drop wasn't released sooner,' one said.
It's hard to make a name for yourself in the food industry — let alone in a space as small as the allergen market. Shila said this is partially because of her father's tenacity and hard working nature.
'He does 18 hour days sometimes. He's an intense, committed, hardworking human being,' Shila said.
'We all work together well in our team.'
Another reason is the fact the business has been 'really reliable' and manufacture its own products — something Shila said is a 'big difference' in comparison to other retailers. It also does food service 'quite well'.
'We've been successful because we've been consistent, we've always worked on improving our products and listening to our consumers. We're very emotive. We really put the consumer first,' she said.
'Not everyone's going to love our products, and we don't always get it right, but we always try to make amends if we don't.'
Mr Barak is turning 70 this year, and his daughter said the 'legend' is living proof that it is never too late to chase your dreams.
Looking ahead, Shila said she'd really love to see Well & Good do more in retail, such as offering more 'finished product'.
Currently the brand's Lemon Coconut Cake Mix is one of its most popular items.
'It's not new to us but it's a flavour we kind of got to market first, and there wasn't a lot of that flavour around,' she said.
'And now I'm started to see that absolutely everywhere.'
She said its plain, self raising flour is hands down its most purchased product, saying it was formulated in a particular way so it was very close to the original.
Shila was tight lipped on any new products that the business was working on, but said the aim was to help everyone access a wide range of food. Shila said the market for gluten free products is growing incrementally, as more people are diagnosed with coeliac disease, but also people who just want to expand their food options.
Well & Good will be featured at the Gluten Free Expo in Sydney on August 16 and 17 at Randwick Racecourse. Shila revealed the expo was set to be buzzing with a lot of exhibitors. She revealed Well & Good would be sampling its new pizza bread and essentially its whole cake range.
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