In Pontwelly, near Llandysul, Tregroes Waffle Bakery is shouting ‘Let there be brunch!’, as its waffles reach far and wide.
The family-run Carmarthenshire waffle bakery’s success story sees its original butter flavoured waffle, a Welsh take on a popular Dutch delicacy, sold in every Tesco Café across the UK.
The Original Butter flavoured waffles will be packaged in traditional black wrapping, with the milk and dark chocolate waffles being packaged in the purple and maroon wrapping respectively. Each package will also have the iconic gold writing of Tregroes on the front.
The company has been producing waffles for more than 40 years, ever since Tregroes funder Kees Huysmans arrived in Wales with dreams of becoming a farmer.
Tesco Wales buyer Nathan Edwards is sure that the waffles will be a big hit for Tesco shoppers and consumers: “Tregroes is a perfect example of fusing one’s heritage with the Welsh culture to create something amazing and unique.”
After letting go of his dream to become Wales’ next top farmer, Kees tried his hand in another adventure after receiving raving reviews on his adapted stroop waffle recipe from the people of Henllan Railway.
Ever since, the company has gone from strength to strength, achieving many great feats such as becoming British Retail Consortium certified, allowing them to supply to national supermarkets and as well as a myriad of independent delicatessens, coffee shops, cafés, and corner shops within the Welsh Borders and beyond.
This in turn paved the way for Tregroes to then become the first company to supply Starbucks with waffles and waffle-related products.
To keep the identity and culture at the core of the business, Kees has also sold 60 per cent of the company shares to the employees of Tregroes, ensuring that every decision is decided by the whole team.
Sales Director at Tregroes Waffle Bakery Rhys Jones said: “We have been working with Tesco for over 20 years and it has been a pleasure every step of the way.”
Tesco’s Wales-based buying team plan further product launches this year to further expand its industry-leading range of Welsh products in stores.