There’s a famed waffle spot that I keep hearing about called Fluffed Cafe.
With their first outlet located in Taman Paramount, Fluffed is a dessert cafe that’s well known for its waffles and ice cream, alongside various other offerings.
Most recently, they’ve also gone viral for their new bingsu brand, Flurrē.
To some, it might seem like Fluffed has been able to achieve success easily. However, speaking to the founders, Charles and Joe, I quickly learnt that Fluffed’s journey has not been as rosy as it seems.
Taking the leap of faith
The story starts about a decade ago, if not more.
Prior to Fluffed, both Joe and Charles were full-time home bakers. Joe, who has a background in interior design, was doing quite well selling customised cakes for events like weddings and birthdays.
Meanwhile, Charles had wanted to do a baking course after his SPM, but to appease his parents, he ended up pursuing food science and nutrition. After graduating, he worked as a nutritionist—a stint that would last three months.
“Something dramatic happened to me,” Charles shared about his pivot. “My boss sent me to work in a pharmacy in Johor on my birthday. It was supposed to be my off day.”
The nightmare doesn’t end there. During the three-hour drive down to Johor, it had been raining heavily, and unfortunately, Charles got into a car accident.
“I crashed into the divider, and my car was like a total loss. But miraculously, I was totally fine,” he recalled.
This near-death experience showed him that he needed to pursue what he truly loved in life. After his trip, he handed in his resignation letter and bought an oven.
Unlike Joe, Charles had a hard time selling his cakes. Focusing on selling to cafes, he primarily created cakes with fruit fillings, which wasn’t as popular at the time.
Thus, he decided, why not start his own cafe where he could sell his own cakes?
At some point along the journey, Joe and Charles met, and their mutual interest got them to work together. Joe was looking to scale up, something he realised would be tricky to do alone. With that, in 2015, the two opened up Fluffed together.
Growing with and for the team
To offer more options at Fluffed, Charles took on barista courses and learnt how to make his own ice cream. And if he knows how to make ice cream, why not waffles too?
“Surprisingly, people prefer our waffles,” he mused. “It became our famous thing.”
The growth was slow but steady. They said that they didn’t rely on any gimmicks, never paid for marketing, and never really achieved virality in the early days.
Plus, back then, Taman Paramount had been much quieter. There were only one or two eateries there, and the rest were all hardware shops and the like. It took them around one year before they gained proper traction.
From there, though, Fluffed continued to do well and even survived through the pandemic. Yet, it seems like it’s only now that Fluffed has taken a real interest in expanding, having opened their second store at Sunway Mentari just last year.
The reason for the long wait was the fact that they were understaffed. The two were also very involved with the daily operations, making it hard to focus on the big picture.
Things changed when they met their mentor. With the mentor’s guidance, Charles and Joe were able to let go, delegate, and eventually, expand.
Another key motivator for their expansion, the duo revealed, is their team.
“We are quite blessed to have a lot of local staff who have worked with us for many years, so we think that we need to expand in order to offer them better positions, higher pay, and a future within our company,” Charles shared.
Rising as entrepreneurs
Coming from a background as bakers, entrepreneurship is something that can be challenging for the duo. Charles believes that it’s the love they have for F&B that really gives them the energy to challenge themselves as business leaders.
“If you really like it, you have the energy to handle all the other things you’re not interested in,” he said.
Reflecting on the past decade that they’ve been running Fluffed, Charles is proud to share that they’ve grown quite a lot—from “just boys who like baking” to full-fledged businessmen.
He recalled that in the beginning, their staff would sometimes look down on them, as they were the same age. But now, after 10 years in the industry, they’ve earned their respect.
Advising budding F&B entrepreneurs, Charles said that it’s important to know your direction. With so many cafes in the market these days, it’s key to find your USP so that customers can remember you.
“You have to be the person who knows everything,” he added. “We know how to make coffee, ice cream, and cakes. You have to be part of everything. Only if you can do that should you consider opening a cafe.”
Additionally, you can’t be driven by money. He believes that when profit is the motive, when problems arise, you will end up making desperate and wrong decisions.
For Joe, he believes that Fluffed’s secret strength lies in selling what they like to eat.
“If you’re doing business just because it’s a trend, you don’t even know whether your product is good or not,” he said. “But if you actually enjoy what you’re selling, that’s your strength.”
Not expanding in a flurry
If you keep up with food trends in KL, you may have come across a viral video recently of a “salmon don bingsu”. Don’t worry, it’s not real sashimi—it’s actually jelly.
This was the creation of Charles and Joe’s new bingsu cafe, Flurrē by Fluffed.
During their travels, the two have gotten the chance to try many different desserts, some of which have served as inspiration. Shaved ice aside, they’ve also cooked up many different ideas in the past.
“We are quite stable with Fluffed now, so we wanted to see if we were capable of doing other things,” Charles said. “We kind of want to surprise fans and show we can make something as good as Fluffed.”
Studying the shaved ice market, they felt that there was an opportunity for them to offer something unique. Most of Flurrē’s toppings and the base are made in-house, from scratch.
The salmon don is obviously one unique offering that has caught the attention of many. However, the two revealed that the salmon don wasn’t something they recommended or highlighted on their menu.
“We thought that one was more of a fun flavour, a gimmicky flavour,” Charles admitted. “We didn’t expect people to like it that much. It’s out of my expectations, but I’m very happy.”
Whipping up the future
With the positive responses garnered by both brands, Charles and Joe are definitely interested in growing. In fact, it seems like their next branch is closer than we think.
Yet, they do not want to rush and abandon their quality or core values. They want to pay attention to the details, such as manpower arrangements and inventory.
Having run their Taman Paramount outlet for nine years, they’ve actually watched their regulars’ children grow up.
“We became part of their childhood memories,” Charles said.
That personal touch is something they hope to preserve, even as they grow bigger and better in the years to come.
Featured Image Credit: Fluffed Cafe