MONTREAL — Canada-based Flings Pastries introduced its toaster pastries to more than 500 US Target stores in January, a significant step for the company, which launched online in June 2023 by offering its products through Amazon and the Flings’ website. The high-protein toaster pastries have captured the attention of consumers seeking a “better-for-you” snack that’s both tasty and high in protein, gluten-free and low in sugar, according to the company.
What started as a collaboration among childhood friends, Dino Vassiliou and Ben Outmezguine, when they were boys, dreaming up business ideas they could start together eventually, first manifested in CoolWay, a low-calorie frozen dessert. They started the business in their mothers’ kitchens, at 19 years old, testing out recipes until they came upon one that could work. Eventually, they became the fourth top-selling ice cream pints in Canada.
They sold CoolWay in 2022, took a few months to research and brainstorm and came up with a new enterprise: Flings pastries.
On a camping trip, the two reunited with their love of toaster pastries. They wanted to “hack (their) favorite snack” in a “better-for-you” format, emphasizing increased protein and decreased sugar.
“We wanted something that wasn’t frozen so we weren’t confined to traditional brick and mortar,” Vassiliou said. “We also wanted to be shelf stable. Third, we wanted to do something that hadn’t been done before and that was truly innovative in a space. That’s where we’re having a hard time. We were looking at all kinds of categories.”
Dino Vassiliou and Ben Outmezguine
Source: Flings
The pastry they made, Flings, has 10 grams of protein and 1 gram of sugar and is gluten-free and keto-friendly.
Flings’ founders hope to offer flavor around the nostalgia of childhood and what consumers may remember as their favorites. The pastries are available in strawberry, Sticky Cinnamon and hot chocolate.
“When we launched, we had so much traction around this product on Amazon and on our website, but we just felt like there was a product market fit for this kind of snack,” Vassiliou said.
A couple of weeks later, Target knocked on the door, expressing their belief in the brand, he said. The conversations sped up, with the pastries hitting Target stores nationwide in January.
Each box contains four 8.3-oz pastries. Flings retail at Target at $8.99.
Vassiliou said he hoped for “strong velocities” at Target stores, a feat he said the brand’s social media, web presence and Instagram influencers will achieve. And the consumers who keep coming back.
“The flavors, the size and shape of the pastry itself, all bring back the nostalgia we feel in thinking back to days when ‘better-for-you’ wasn’t in play,” he said. “As adults, this snack gives us a boost, with protein and no ‘sugar crash.’”
