KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 22 -- Hummus -- that ubiquitous Middle-Eastern dip made from mashed chickpeas, tahini, olive oil and lemon juice -- is the ultimate fuss-free food.
Eaten as a dip or even a spread, hummus with its high protein content, is also pretty healthy.
That is why Aneesha Veriah and Fariz Zain Zahedi are intent on spreading some hummus love in the city with their home-grown brand Hummus Co.
“When I was living in the UK, I picked up the habit of eating hummus every day because it was so convenient,” said Aneesha who would always have a tub available. After coming back to Malaysia, she developed a craving for hummus so she started looking for it in the supermarkets.
There were different brands available but “it didn’t taste quite the same” admitted the 28-year-old financial consultant. Aneesha and her partner Fariz then decided to make their own hummus.
Using the traditional Middle Eastern recipe with lemon juice and tahini, they decided to do away with preservatives and additives. Through trial and error, they came up with a couple of recipes that became favourites among their friends and family.
“We would bring our dips to parties and we won’t tell our friends and family that we made them,” said Aneesha. That way, they would get unbiased feedback about the dips. Much to their surprise, they loved the dips and started inquiring about them. It tasted so good that they wanted to buy them!
“After creating the traditional hummus, we decide to experiment with recipes on our own. Not every recipe turned out right, though. The wasabi hummus didn’t turn out too well,” said Aneesha.
Established at the beginning of the year with a Facebook page, Hummus Co did not rest on their laurels after the company was born.
“For our R&D, we will keep the flavour only when at least 50 people say they like it,” said Fariz. On Facebook, they were able to engage with their customers, getting feedback and suggestions for new flavours.
Hummus Co also participated in various food bazaars in the Klang Valley, including Markets at Jaya One and Bangsar Shopping Centre’s Seek & Keep. Recently, they opened a pop-up store at TTDI Market. Their next event would be Foodie Fest 2013 in Publika at the end of the month.
“Participating in bazaars is sort of like a marketing exercise for us. It’s a good channel for people to try our products and a place where they can meet us. We’re trying to build up the brand slowly,” said Fariz.
Since the birth of Hummus Co, Aneesha and Fariz learned a lot about entrepreneurship. Although they have a background in financial consulting, Hummus Co is where they learned about marketing, branding, customer service and R&D.
“I enjoy doing this business. My day job requires me to be in front of the computer monitor for hours. After work, we would make hummus till 3am in the morning. I don’t think I can be in front of the computer till 3am!” said Aneesha.
Currently, Hummus Co has eight varieties of hummus and two dips including Signature, Tangy Jalepeno, Smoky Chipotle, Spicy Sriracha, Roasted Garlic, Greek Olive, Sun Dried Tomato, Classic Pesto, Baba Ghanoush and Mexican Black Bean.
“All of them sell equally well,” said Aneesha when asked which one is the best-seller. Her favourite? “That would be like asking me which is my favourite child!” she laughed.
Hummus Co has evolved as a company since its inception months ago. Initially, they had “average packaging” but over time, they improved the packaging to look “high-end and premium.”
Fortunately, the prices for the hummus are reasonable for a 200gm tub. The range is from RM14 to RM21.
“So far nobody has complained about the prices,” said Aneesha.
Although the duo still have full-time jobs, they would make dips twice weekly and production takes from half a day to a day. They have become so good at it that they can produce up to 100 tubs a week on average. Sometimes, they prepare a day ahead of a bazaar, spending the entire day boiling chickpeas and cooking them.
Aneesha and Fariz also travel often to get inspiration for new recipes. Growing up, they always had good food on the table so they are quite the foodies themselves.
Aneesha recalls attending cooking competitions where her mother would win first or second place. Of Indian and Chinese descent, Aneesha is lucky to have learned about food from both cultures.
“We are very lucky because our parents are supportive with our business,” said Aneesha. Both their family members actively promote the dips to their friends and colleagues.
“We’ve learned so many things on the job and we’re lucky that the older generation is very supportive of us young people starting a business. Both our parents are doing business too so they give us guidance.”
Hummus Co is on the right track to success as they’ve gotten offers to have their products featured in supermarkets.
“Malaysians are adventurous with food. At first, we were worried about food education, whether people know about hummus. Eventually, we realised that people are open to try new things. Also, many Malaysians have tried hummus abroad so it’s nothing new to them,” said Fariz.
Find out more about Hummus Co on their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/hummusco
This story was first published in Crave in the print edition of The Malay Mail on November 21, 2013.
