Hey guys, “Salut” ✌️
Alex from YouTube here, hoping you are well!
You are getting this email because you have shown some interest in my side projects :
- The Chef’s Notebook
- A Smart Grocery Bag
- Better Kitchen Towels
- A Truly Unique Chef Knife
Happy to report that they are all moving forward nicely : I found a manufacturer for the bag, v2 of the notebook is on its way, and custom kitchen towels are being tested right now.
What I am missing right now is your opinion.
Rather than guessing, we want to ask about your preferences : Your feedback will make these products better.
Here are more details about each project :
The Grocery Bag :
They are ever so useful and yet they never seem to be quite adapted to my needs! So I came up with ideas to make peace with them.
Unfortunately all of my ideas don’t fit in one bag (trust me). So decisions had to be made. We came to the conclusion that two different bags would fit needs in different ways.
A heavy duty bag with high quality fabrics made in North America or in Europe that could last a lifetime of grocery shopping. It comes at the price of more weight, less convenience to carry it around and a higher price.
Now for better practicality, a pocketable, minimalist bag made in Vietnam that would be cheaper. I hope you let us know your preference in the survey.
The Notebook :
The first version was released 6 months ago, it was a great success thanks to you. We sold 1500 notebooks in under a week ! even left 500 of you on the waiting list for a restock. Let’s talk about V2 : As for now, we already know that we want to make it stronger, a touch slimmer, and with more cooking cheat sheets at the end.
Now let’s get into the kitchen, where all the magic happens ! What a sorcerer needs to make good magic is a good wand. “Reasonably pliant, yet... unyielding.”
The Chef Knife:
I have been willing to create a chef knife for quite a while. I wanted something unique, not just stamping my brand on any blade. I am aiming for something that would merge my french roots with my passion for great craftsmanship. I am afraid the progress here is a little slow to my taste. Finding a good supplier, open to working with me and my crazy expectations, with the capacity to produce thousands of units is proving to be more difficult than I thought. I am seeing first hand how merging quality and quantity is a balance game.
The saucepan:
You probably saw during my sauce series that having good skills isn’t always enough, good tools such as an effective saucepan make a difference. What makes a saucepan effective is the heat conductivity. I want to provide you with the best and who better than michelin stars know what that is. These renowned chefs use copper saucepans and I got mine as I went to Istanbul to meet my friend Emir, the founder of “SOY”. This amazing company makes high quality copper saucepans and innovated it by using silver lining that allows easier maintenance than a plain copper pan but maintains its prime quality: heat conductivity. But it doesn’t stop there, Emir managed to make a copper pan with a stainless steel lining that clears the user from any maintenance but comes with a slight reduction of heat conductivity. I can say that I am very excited to talk about this collaboration with you as this product is the closest to being released to you guys !
The apron:
As for anyone who likes to get dirty in the kitchen, whether it is with a chef knife or a saucepan you need an apron. Cooking gear needs to be simple and effective, this is why I envision a robust apron with a great long lasting fabric and a personal touch that I can’t talk about just now. I want people to wear an apron that serves its purpose and more, I am trying to bring the dull apron to something meaningful.
I hope you enjoyed learning more about what is going on behind the scenes. I will keep you posted and come back for your input soon. Have a great day.
Alex