Troy Bonde and Winston Alfieri are taking aim at America's estimated $2.5 billion (sales) pasta sauce market. Their brand, Los Angeles-based Sauz, has attracted younger shoppers with creative combos like miso-garlic and hot honey marinara--flavors far from traditional red-sauce Italian-American cuisine. The pair has raised nearly $22 million from VCs and is on track to exceed $10 million in revenue by the end of 2025. Bonde and Alfieri initially partnered during the pandemic making a hand sanitizer dispenser that doubled as a thermometer. To conserve cash, they lived on pasta. Soon, they grew tired of limited flavor options and, as Covid faded, pivoted from sanitizer to sauce. Today, their jars are sold in 8,000 retail locations such as Whole Foods, Sprouts and Target.
Troy Bonde wears a crewneck sweater by Todd Snyder 