From Top Chef to Vanilla Pioneer and Serial Entrepreneur

When someone already knows during their training what business idea they’ll pursue independently, success often follows. This was the case with Stephan Stemminger – chef and entrepreneur. A chef because he doesn’t just love cooking, he excels at it. And an entrepreneur because he went a step further and began importing one of his favorite ingredients – vanilla beans – into Switzerland himself.

Stephan has been cooking his whole life. The idea for self-employment took shape during his culinary training. In March 2008, he founded his first company, Mystarkoch, and has been cooking at the highest level for private clients ever since. He did it so well that he joined Switzerland’s national cooking team and continued to impress clients with top-tier cuisine in their homes. The result: success after success – culminating in third place on the world ranking, achieved by Stephan and his team.

Thirteen years later, in summer 2021, after two years of intense preparation, Stephan founded his second company: The Vanilla GmbH Manufaktur, Switzerland’s very first vanilla manufactory.

Stephan imports vanilla beans from Indonesia and Madagascar – buying directly from farmers and supporting their families. In Switzerland, he sells the beans to restaurants, patisseries, bakeries, and via an online shop to private customers.

In his own manufactory, Stephan processes a portion of the beans into high-quality products like vanilla salt, vanilla seasoning, vanilla powder, vanilla paste, vanilla sugar, and more – all handmade using his own recipes. And he doesn’t settle for average: his vanilla beans boast the highest measured vanillin content in Switzerland at 2.63% (the average is 1.45%).

Even before launch, many customer orders had already been placed. What was missing: the necessary cash to build the company and set up production – both capital-intensive endeavors. The vanilla beans needed to be pre-financed, packaging was still missing, as were gift sets for the online shop.

Someone recommended Ahead Microcredits to Stephan. And so the success story continued: his business model was assessed for strengths and weaknesses, the payout was quick and straightforward, and the vanilla beans reached their rightful destination – the gourmet community.

The Vanilla GmbH Manufaktur
Zürcherstrasse 118
8952 Schlieren / Zürich
+41 76 577 90 79
the-vanilla.ch
stephan@the-vanilla.ch