Hardcore Sprinkles

2017–2019

Developing the only flavored plant-based sprinkle on the market. Yes, like for cake.

Founder, sole proprietor

Problem
For kids with soy, gluten, or corn allergies, it’s nearly impossible to find sprinkles they can eat. Hardcore Sprinkles set out to answer the question “what if sprinkles were allergen-free, made with real natural ingredients, and had fun flavors too?”

Role
For two years, I ran Hardcore Sprinkles in the hours I wasn’t working for an early-stage startup. I dreamed up the flavors, developed recipes, ran the production line in a commercial kitchen, was a one-woman e-commerce shop, ran a wholesale operation, designed packaging and photographed/baked my own promos.

Outcome
Hardcore Sprinkles was featured by Real Simple magazine (Oct 2018 print edition), Eater Austin’s Holiday Gift Guide, Molly Yeh, and others. I sold online and locally to bakeries, scoop shops, and artisanal markets including Nadamoo, Gati, Vice Cream, Zucchini Kill, and Beeline Grocery.

X-factor
I loved the physical challenge of a kitchen, as well as the mental challenge of running a business and finding interesting ways to market my product. My number one happy place was coming up with funky flavors like rosemary or cayenne sprinkles – and having no boss to tell me I couldn’t make up more.

Wait…what?

I had the idea for Hardcore Sprinkles when I was playing around with ideas for my annual holiday project in 2017. I found a recipe for cayenne sprinkles in a cookbook and thought, man, what if there was a whole rainbow of different flavors? I started experimenting right away, and things spiraled quickly from there. After a few months of online sales, I upgraded my operation to a commercial kitchen and was stocking two dozen SKUs. I sold at local events and built up a wholesale roster that included most of the vegan bakeries and scoop shops in Austin.

The ethos of Hardcore Sprinkles was basically “no bullshit.”

Hardcore Sprinkles were made without any of the top eight allergens (milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and soybeans) in a 100% gluten-free and vegetarian kitchen. No wax, no preservatives, no ingredients you can’t pronounce, no crap – which made us attractive to the local vegan community as well as the online allergen-free community.

I loved the meticulousness of recipe development, the creative outlet of art-directing ridiculous photos. I thrived on the direct feedback from customers, and “just figure it out” mindset of running a small business.

It was a wonderful experiment and I learned a ton about myself, the food/CPG business, and how to push past my personal limits. But before you ask: no, they aren’t coming back anytime soon.