She's A Whisk Taker
Kerry Caloyannidis became an entrepreneur by accident rather, than design. Nonetheless, Kerry’s business Whisk & Pin has become the most prominent name in the gourmet dry goods market. Kerry’s colourful past as one of the world’s top international pastry chefs has taught her a valuable lesson for Whisk & Pin, that top quality ingredients and a skilled human touch make food fantastic.
Kerry grew up surrounded by good food. ‘My dad was Greek and my mum Scottish and they both loved to cook. In Sydney in the 1970’s, Mediterranean food was still considered exotic so the neighbourhood kids would come to our place to eat a strange dish called “mousaka”.’ It was this genetic connection to cuisine which would later lead Kerry down a varied and exciting path in the food industry.
After dabbling in an economics and arts degree, Kerry decided to take the Australian rite of passage and travel whilst sorting out what she wanted to do in life. Her travels took her to London, where she studied at the Cordon Bleu school of cooking, Paris and, finally Los Angeles, where she found a job at Spago, one of Beverly Hill’s most famous restaurants, where she worked as a pastry chef for two years.
Cooking for Spago’s well connected clientele offered Kerry access to many restricted areas, such as the kitchens of Hollywood’s most fashionable addresses, including Michael Jackson’s Neverland ranch. It also allowed her to develop contacts within the food industry who offered her the opportunity to work in France and further her cooking training. In the kitchen of a three star restaurant on the Riviera, Kerry learnt about the obsessive drive that was necessary to become a top chef.
Six months after moving to France, Kerry moved back to LA to help an old colleague open a new bakery. Kerry gained fame as the pastry chef at La Brea, which was to become LA’s most fashionable bakery. As her one year overseas adventure turned in to five, Kerry briefly returned to Sydney, taking a position at the Rockpool. She moved back to the states after receiving a call from a contact who was opening a restaurant in New York. After helping yet another restaurant rise to fame, Kerry decided it was time to return to Sydney for good with an Australian man she’d met in New York.
With one child and another on its way, Kerry and her husband moved from their inner-city flat to a picturesque cottage in the Blue Mountains. In the peaceful atmosphere of the mountains, Kerry’s passion for cooking and her craving for a challenge resurfaced. With three small children she knew she could not sacrifice the hours necessary to work at the high level she had. She began experimenting with muesli, primarily to assuage her own cravings.
‘One of the things I missed most about the states was granola. There was nothing like it here so I just had to make my own. It tasted really good so I packaged it and gave it to friends for Christmas and opened a small stall at the local growers market’ explains Kerry.
At this time, growers markets began to boom and every weekend people would flock from the city to pick up fresh produce from the Blue Mountains. Kerry’s muesli invention was a hit and soon she began to attract a cult following. It wasn’t long before retailers begun approaching her with purchase orders. With the sudden overwhelming demand, Kerry began to think that this could be a great business opportunity. She hired staff and moved in to a bakery in Katoomba and gradually expanded Whisk & Pin’s range to include cookies, baking mixes and dried fruits.
For Kerry, who had spent most of her life covered in flour, running her own business was a steep learning curve. ‘I didn’t even know how to turn on a computer. I’d never written a business plan or applied for a loan before and I wasn’t interested in any of this. I just wanted to make muesli.’
As a result, Whisk & Pin grew naturally, its success purely dependent on the quality of the product, which spoke for itself. This gradual process has suited Kerry, now a mother of four, very well. Whisk & Pin products now sell in over 1500 stores throughout Australia, including David Jones and Macro. Despite this growth, Kerry has resisted the temptation to turn to machinery to make her product.
‘Whisk & Pin is and always has been a handmade product, which is what separates it from the rest. Nothing compares to the taste of fresh ingredients with a human touch, which is what Whisk & Pin is all about… besides, it’s so much more fun that way’ says Kerry.
For more information on Whisk and Pin products or to find your nearest outlet, contact the company on 02 4782 3975 or visit www.whiskandpin.com.au
