Food 2 Go Magazine - April 2006

Filling orders for supermarkets, cafes and restaurants means many bakeries have to mechanise and computerise but at Turkish Bread Ken Vaughan and Bruce Cheek are resisting the trend and making their dough the traditional way.

On his O.E. and about to visit Gallipoli, Ken Vaughan bit into a sandwich that would change his life. Of course, Ken didn't know it at the time but years later he could still remember the freshly baked bread that tasted like no other.

He would return to London - and the considerably milder weather - to work as a builder for a few more years before coming home to New Zealand to look for new business opportunities. That opportunity came in the form of Turkish Bread, a specialty bread company Ken and friend Bruce Cheek bought around 18 months ago. Part of the sale agreement included the stone-lined ovens imported from Turkey as well as training with bakers brought out from Turkey. Ken and Bruce determined Turkish Bread¹s products would be hand-crafted, free from artificial additives, preservatives and sugar, and sold mainly in supermarkets with orders taken from cafes and restaurants.

There would be no computers controlling the baking process and as much as could be done by hand would. Long days rapidly became the norm for Ken and Bruce, a South African with a background in hospitality management, as they tried to bridge the divide between traditional Turkish baking and production efficient enough for supermarket chains.

"It is an extremely fine line between rubbish and something you can eat," says Ken. "It can be as simple as .5 per cent too much water or a timing issue such as leaving something for two minutes too long or taking it out two minutes too early." There were, he admits, days where they wondered if they'd bitten off more than they could chew as they began another batch of bread while the neighbourhood ducks munched on the rejects.

"To get our product in Turkey, you¹d have to buy it freshly baked from a small Artisan-style shop. The oldest form of bread comes from Anatolia in Turkey where it¹s basically flour and water ­ no yeast ­ which is shaped by hand and heated over a hot stone."

Ken and Bruce learned through trial and error, with Ken concentrating on building the brand and Bruce on the baking. "We complement each other perfectly," jokes Ken, "because I can¹t bake and he can¹t sell."

After a year, he reckons they now have the basic recipe down pat and many different styles of bread are baked daily at the West Auckland factory. The range now includes: 

• Plain or garlic Turkish pide (pronounced p-day), traditional flat bread.
• Mini pide.
• Traditional Turkish Bread called Ekmek.
• Turkish Yufka (pronounced yuf-kar) which is a yeast-free "wrap" style.
• Turkish Borek, pre-filled Turkish breads with fillings such as spinach & feta.

Ken says the breads, especially the pide and yufka, make excellent pizza bases while each is ideal for gourmet toasted sandwiches.

Originally a salesman in the wholesale grocery trade, Ken ran his own distribution company before he went travelling. It was one of the first businesses to distribute hummus, which gave him a taste for Middle Eastern cuisine. He says without that work experience, he doubts he would have been so keen to go into a food business. "You'd have to be foolhardy to take on a venture like this without some sort of knowledge of the grocery and hospitality trade because it a tough industry."

His background has opened doors but building a brand takes time and energy. Packaging is a vital ingredient to Turkish Bread. The company worked with Georgia Croad Design, in Auckland¹s upmarket Parnell, to devise distinctive fuchsia and orange plastic bags for its products.

"Oxygen and bread equals mould so we use a system which takes all the oxygen out and gas-flush the product with an inert nitrogen gas which stabilises it for an extended shelf life."

The latest product is Turkish-style naan bread pre-garnished with delicious fresh ingredients - buttered garlic, Baba Ghanoush or spicy bean & parmesan. It is a chilled product, a new venture for Turkish Bread. "Obviously when you¹re supplying to supermarkets, shelf life is an issue. A chilled product gets around some of those challenges."

Turkish Bread has used food safety and nutrition consultants Burwater Pacific Group to develop its new products. Next up is a range of dips to complement its breads. "Necessity is the mother of all invention," says Ken, "so we¹ve come up with a lot of these products ourselves to expand the range.

In the 1980s, croissants were all the rage; in the 1990s it was panini and focaccia. I hope Turkish-style bread will be the next big thing because it just tastes so good and is so versatile."


Sunday Star Times - February 19, 2006
Start-Up Business - Early To Rise Makes the Bread Succeed

Giving us our daily bread is the daily grind for business partners Bruce Cheek and Ken Vaughan. The pair often worked 19 hour days to get their specialty bakery Turkish Bread off the ground last year. The hours are no longer quite so arduous, but 4am starts remain the norm and they are still putting money into the business as it finds it feet.

They produce high-quality Turkish-style breads which they supply to supermarkets and cafes. The breads are aimed at the top end of the market, which means each loaf has to be hand made and baked in a traditional stone lined oven to get the authentic texture and taste which gourmet customers require. At the same time the bakery needs to be efficient enough to cope with the delivery and cost requirements of the supermarket chains.

Vaughan said the company's biggest hurdle had not been achieving sales, which were rising nicely, but handling the dough, literally. Unlike most mass production bakeries, they do not use artificial ingredients such as preservatives.

There are no computers controlling the baking process, and the bread is made in the same way it would be in a village bakery in Turkey, which means the dough can be affected by factors such as the temperature and humidity of the air.

In the first few months there were many failed batches of bread and extra hours worked to make up for lost production. Vaughan said a flock of ducks outside their West Auckland factory must have been the fattest in the country. But time and experience meant their staff of eight was now producing a consistent product.

Cheek and Vaughan came to the business via circuitous routes. Vaughan had a sales background in the wholesale grocery trade and eventually set up his own distribution company which was one of the first to sell hummus in new Zealand. This made him aware of the growing market for Middle Eastern cuisine.

When he sold the business he went travelling, spending time in Turkey where he fell in love with the bread and was convinced there was a market for it in this country.

On his return he became involved in property development. But the idea of a Turkish bakery remained and when the opportunity came to open one with another businessman came, he took it. But the pair could not agree on the best way of running the business and Vaughan left the partnership to concentrate on his property interests.

The bakery was subsequently sold to Cheek, a South African immigrant with experience in running small businesses. When Cheek was looking for staff he heard of Vaughan's previous involvement and invited him to come back into the business as a partner, bringing an extra pair of hands and additional working capital.

The pair seem to have found a recipe for success and Vaughan said they were on track to break even this year, and hoped next year to turn their first profit.


Grocer's Review - Beach, Bach & BBQ Feature - November Issue 2005
Turkish Bread (2005) Ltd Launches Gourmet Turkish Börek

Börek is a Turkish special-occasion food which requires great skill and patience to make by hand; it forms a staple part of the Turkish diet.

Turkish Börek is made from great tasting bread filled with the goodness of delicious fresh ingredients. A twin-pack of Turkish Börek makes a great vegetarian meal for two people served with salad or when sliced thinly can be served as the ultimate gourmet pre-dinner party snack.

This product is a delicious substitute for standard garlic bread, enjoyed as a light snack or accompaniment to any meal. Perfect for serving with soups, summer barbecues or enjoy with family and friends as Sunday brunch!

Ken Vaughan of Turkish Bread (2005) Ltd says that customers now have greater expectations for "quality" natural products, and a higher awareness of alternative ethnic foods. Ken claims that they have had such an overwhelming response to this market right throughout Auckland; as it becomes a more multi-cultural city with a "café culture" that doesn¹t just stop at the Bombays!

He also says that the versatility of this product makes it a very exciting new category to launch in New Zealand.

At two recent trade shows, Turkish Bread was able to taste-test around 12,000 consumers who enjoyed all the flavour profiles and recognised the benefits of low-fat, preservative-free Turkish bread.

You can choose from three delicious combinations of fillings:

• Spinach & Feta
• Garlic Mushroom 
• Sundried Tomato & Olive.

Turkish Bread believes that the Börek is best positioned with the chilled garlic breads, pizzas and quiche-type products in the refrigerated dairy-deli section of your local supermarket.

Böreks are gas-flushed and have a minimum shelf-life of 15 days.

Turkish Böreks enjoy a high G.P and are proving to have good turn-over. Early sales have proved very strong. All products are stocked on a sale or return basis.

Turkish Bread operates a vendor-refill style of distribution throughout the North Island using Eye Level Marketing Ltd.

For further information on Turkish Bread lines, please contact Ken Vaughan (Marketing Manager) on 09 837 7871, mob 027 236 1340 or email ken@turkishbread.co.nz


The Food Show & The Hospitality Show 2005
Trade Show Success - They're Loving Our Bread!
 
Our goal is to educate people on how to 'heat & eat' our breads in true Turkish style - grill, toast, fry, oven bake - it's all about taking it back to it's original "stone oven freshness".

We had an overwhelming response and gave thousands of people the chance to experience a new taste sensation.

A fabulous way to have a huge amount of fun - especially with the more exuberant customers who belly-danced for their free Turkish bread!

To ensure we keep up with the enthusiastic demand of consumers, we are constantly introducing new authentic Turkish Breads to the NZ market - the different types of Turkish breads are all so good and people just can't get enough!

We look forward to seeing you all again next year so you can try our new range of products for FREE.

Congratulations to our Competition Winner!
Congratulations to Jean Jennings of Pakuranga for being our winner at THE FOOD SHOW 2005. Jean purchased from our range of delicious handcrafted authentic Turkish Breads & went in the draw to win a Breville 800 Class Professional Grade Sandwich Press valued at $300.00.

Turkish Bread is best served warm - try making a CAFE-STYLE TOASTED SANDWICH in your home using a sandwich press - Cut Turkish Pide in half lengthways (panini-style), fill with your favourite fillings and toast in a sandwich press. Healthy & delicious!