Wonder Waffel
Starting a business is typically a steep climb for anyone, but the degree of difficulty is heightened significantly if you happen to be in a new country and introducing a foreign food concept to a different and unfamiliar customer base. All of that and more was true for Swiss-born Seraina Hug, founder and owner of popular European restaurant chain Wonder Waffel, when she set about bringing her concept to Melbourne, Florida. Fortunately, Hug contacted the Florida Small Business Development Center at Eastern Florida State College (FSBDC at EFSC), a sub-center of the FSBDC at the University of Central Florida, which was able to assist her on her way to a successful opening of her waffle shop.
Boasting its position as one of the first in the US, Wonder Waffel Melbourne features a different take on comfort food. All of the dishes on the menu are built around a waffle made from a proprietary recipe then loaded with amazing ingredients chosen by the customer. “We serve waffles made from scratch,” explains Hug. “We have savory (think Mexican, Italian, or chicken bbq-like sandwiches made with waffles). We have sweet ones (piled with the customer’s choice of sauces, fruits, and toppings). We have shakes. We have sundaes. We have Italian coffee. We are a place for a sweet tooth!”
“What makes us unique? Hug continued. “You can customize your own waffle with us. Just let me know what you want and I make it possible. I am from Switzerland and we don’t eat waffles for breakfast. We it all day, especially in the afternoon and after dinner for a sweet treat.”
“We immigrated to here and things are a bit different. The rules are different, the laws are different, its hard and you have to learn a lot,” recalls Hug. Under new circumstances, she turned to Robin Braswell, sub-center director and consultant at the FSBDC at EFSC for help. “From our first appointment with the SBDC where we met Robin, she helped me a lot with many questions. She helped me with marketing research, with permits or if we had any question. We are so thankful that Robin is always here and she is part of our amazing journey.”
“Frankly speaking, the SBDC helped us open our restaurant. Robin and her team have been so supportive,” Hug states today. ”It’s hard to be self-employed. My head is everywhere. It’s with the customer, it’s in the kitchen, it’s with my employees. I have to do the marketing, the social media, pay my bills on time. There’s just a lot and the SBDC and Robin have helped me focus to be here and to run my business.”
Today, Wonder Waffel is open and thriving, having already built a loyal clientele. “We did great,” exclaims Hug proudly. “We opened our restaurant and I’m happy Robin is on my side all the time.”
For information about Wonder Waffel, please visit https://wonderwaffelmelbourne.com/ .
