There’s a relatively new snack food company in town that it set on changing the way that we look at healthy treats. Mazra Natural Snacks is owned and operated by Danny Elkhoury and Eury Santana, a couple of guys who have a passion for wholesome granola snacks and cereals.
Before I get into the story of Mazra, let me first tell you a little bit about Danny Elkhoury (pictured left). At 16 years of age, Danny started his own business, making turnover pastries and selling then to convenience stores. Born with an entrepreneurial spirit, and a good business head on his shoulders, he was able to grow the business for three years, until which time be opted to sell his shares. “I wanted to sell something that was healthier,” says Danny. “So I sold my part of the company and did some soul searching. I eventually settled on a natural snack that resembles granola, but comes in the form of a chewy snack bar. No soy, peanuts, non GMO, gluten free, no oils, nothing refined, consisting of favored nuts and sweetened with fruits and pure honey (some might consider the snack vegan). It was around that time that Eury approached me and assured me that I was onto something great.”
Eventually Eury invested some money into the operation and began to head up the marketing side of the business. In such a competitive industry, Eury knew that they had their work cut out for them. The two set up shop in a 6000 square foot facility and began to concoct plans for the future. “We knew that we had a great product,” Eury told me. “The popularity of snack bars drove the business, and we managed to get into a lot of stores – the response was not, necessarily explosive, so we decided to pay more attention to the packaging and marketing the product online. If we could get people to try the snack, they would buy it. We needed packaging that was more eye-catching. Now we’re repackaging the product and adding new flavors, which we are busy rolling out onto the market.”
As much as the owners of Mazra found success in the local market (The Co-op, NOCO, Premiere, FeelRite, etc.), they learned that their strength lay with online sales. “We sent our products to food bloggers,” the two chimed in. “While we were getting consistent orders in local markets, the growth of the online sales was limitless. The power of Instagram is real. The more people that tried the products, the more that word spread. Our growing presence online translated to customer allegiance in the market. We knew that the market was there, and the heavy concentration of online marketing paid off.”
^Alex Elkhoury (online content manager), Danny Elkhoury (president), Michael Scull (Account Manager), Bryan Dunn (Senior VP of Operations)
Today the Mazra team is mainly concerned about keeping fresh new products rolling out. With bars ranging from mango-coconut-pecan to cashew-pistachio-flaxseed making the rounds, Danny and Eury started to get busy rolling out another product – cereals such as apple cinnamon pecan, spiced raison walnut, and chocolate banana hazelnut. The owners are also developing protein bars with cashew and sesame and sunflower seeds (like a candy bar), with an outside covering of chocolate (and a secret ingredient). “There’s 14 grams of protein in a 2 ounce bar,” Danny exclaimed. “People get bored very easily eating the same thing over and over. Combined with a want to eat more healthy snacks, we feel like we’re heading in the right direction. We’ve got more flavors coming out, in new packaging.”
Typically, products of this nature are found in the gourmet aisles, but the mantra of Mazra is that everyone should have access to tasty healthy snacks. Made with local syrup and honey, Mazra is now in over 200 stores, many of which are in NYC. New cereal flavors include chocolate banana hazelnut, spiced raisin walnut and cinnamon apple pecan. There are also some suggested recipes for people who want to use the products in baking or cooking (see here). Recipes include chocolate banana hazelnut pancakes and spiced raisin walnut scones.
If you’re wondering where the name Mazra was derived, Danny says,” It’s Lebanese. My family is from home town of Mazraat al Toufah, which translates to Village of Apples.” In the spirit of his hometown, with the help of a crack squad marketing team, the world is now learning about the delicious and wholesome nature of a product that is made right here in Buffalo.
Mazra Natural Snacks | Website | Facebook | Look for Mazra on local market shelves and at festivals throughout the year