My name is Jan, I'm 25 years old and I'm the founder of CRUPPA. At the end of 2021, my friend Simona came to me through with a simple idea. Fried lentils. And I was immediately excited about it.

We tested at home, in the school kitchen, in the evenings. But we couldn't produce the product consistently. So we stopped the project.

May 2022. I waved goodbye to shool. I bought a deep fryer, cleared out the basement bathroom, and tested recipes until everything clicked.

A year later, I quit my job and went all-in on CRUPPA: legislation, graphics, paperwork, accounting – there was so much to figure out.

On weekends, I rented a kitchen. That's how I could finally start officially making and selling the product.

The first positive feedback came in. I added new flavours garlic and chilli to the portfolio. At the same time, I rented a former pizzeria and began renovations – stainless steel tables, fire doors, hygiene standards, and health inspections.

In December 2023, our own production facility was up and running. From January 2024, we started supplying farmers' markets, vegan shops, and zero-waste stores, gyms and many more places.

Throughout the year, we expanded to various farmers markets and sporting events, culminating in Christmas markets at 4 locations.

In our first year of operation, we managed to sell over 100,000 packages.

After a successful first year, we began searching for a new production facility. This time, we found a standalone space that previously housed a kombucha production operation. The building features ramps, storage areas, multiple rooms, and a production hall.

We got to work immediately, beginning a comprehensive renovation of the space.

After a year of effort, we successfully reconstructed and commissioned our new production facility in December 2025.

We managed to significantly increase our production capacity while also increasing quality standards. Since January 2026, we have been manufacturing here and gradually ramping up production.

With increased capacity, we made a choice start expanding and start offering our products internationally.

We're now focused on optimizing production and growing our international sales, and we're excited about the prospect of securing larger manufacturing facilities to support new product lines.