As we head towards Brea, a century-old baking company in Benson Town, the strong aroma of baked goodies percolates the air and leads us right to the entrance of the factory.
While the basement and ground floor bustle with baking activities of all kinds, the third storey sports a definitive corporate look. Here we are served a wide range of baked goodies and as we dig in, we listen to the age-old tales that led to the making of Brea.
The genesis
This place was born out of, “a desire to provide people with fresh, lip-smacking breads and baked products. We also believe we are serving the goodness of baking with every bite,” says Dianath Arshad, who along with his brother Mothasim Arshad has taken over this family business, which has been running for 120 years. While Dianath takes care of the administration, Mothasim is a trained baker and looks after all the aspects of the kitchen.
The duo who are third generation bakers, have made many changes to the company with the exception of “the age old recipes created by our grandfather -- O Syed Rehman. The history of Brea goes back to 1900, when Syed started by serving bread and baked items to the British Army. It was in 1940 that he officially launched it as a retail outlet under the parent company -- AM Foods,” says Dianath.
In 1960, the same bakery was renamed Crown Bakery and “we were one of the firsts to get into the decorative cakes and confectionery business in the city,” beams Mothasim. Soon, they were supplying snacks to multiplexes, theatres, malls, corporate houses and leading coffee and restaurant chains across Bengaluru. “While these developments were happening, we were young boys. It was only when I turned 19, did I get involved in the family business.”
Dianath was soon joined by his brother and “we were given a year’s time to prove that we had it in us to run this firm.” So the Arshad brothers did an intensive R&D, studying the nuances that went into the making of bread and other bakery delicacies. They found there was a need for authentic breads and cookies in the market. “While our products were doing well, the name was not so catchy. So in 2014, we renamed the company Brea, which means bread in a Dutch dialect,” explains Dianath.
Expanding horizons
They now have 200 outlets across the city, including the Brea kiosk at the Kempegowda International Airport (KIAL). “Here we sell muffins, croissants, cakes and more,” says Dianath, who adds they have also launched a range of cookies that come in boxes displaying landmark buildings from across the city. “Inside the box, is a little note on the history of our city and that particular heritage building. This way, travellers and customers take away a piece of Bengaluru with them.”
The brothers are thrilled to say Brea has “received certification from FSSAI & HACCP.” The new variants of bread options include whole wheat, multi grain, brown, Delhi kulcha, Mumbai pav and burger buns.
The company also launched its brand of bread crumbs and flavoured croutons. The cookies come in innovative flavours such as green chilli, curry leaves and well-known ones such as classic khara, ginger jaggery, butter-salted, cashew almond, double chocolate and choco chips.
The speciality about Brea is that “The name has changed and so has our marketing strategy, but the bread is baked in the same way our grandfather did years ago. So, the taste and the passion are still the same -- just a century old,” smiles Dianath.
