Our Founders \ George Eckrich
Director of Sales & Marketing
To his delight, when George was a young boy, his mother went through a bread-baking phase. The comforting smell of baking bread and the anticipation of those first warm slices fresh from the oven, liberally covered with melting butter, are George’s first food memory.
Given this, it’s not surprising that when he left school at age 20 to pursue a vocation he truly loved, he went to Germany, a country famous for its whole grain artisan breads, and sought a baker’s apprenticeship at Café Konditorei Gleue in Hanover.
After eight years of this and more education, George came back to the US and opened Sourdough: A European Bakery in Austin, Texas. The artisan breads he made there, using traditional ingredients like organic whole grains, unbleached flours and flaxseeds, were an immediate local hit.
In 1998, Whole Foods Market purchased Sourdough and hired George to run its regional bake house and bakery departments. It was while he was working for Whole Foods Market that he met his future partner, Carsten Kruse. The two shared an immediate kinship and common passion, and would occasionally brainstorm about what new products they could make. One they talked often about would be something not quite a bread and not quite a cracker. Something snackable and wholesome, substantial yet elegant.
In 2003, George and Carsten met and talked with Klaus Karg, who was baking delicious, healthy, nontraditional flatbreads in Schwabach, Germany that perfectly fit the bill. Enter Danny Kelly, who had all the equipment expertise they needed, and the idea went beyond brainstorm and into reality. And in 2004, Dr. Kracker was born.
George and his wife live in Austin, Texas with their 17 year-old daughter and 12-year-old son. His favorite cracker is the Seeded Spelt, which he enjoys almost every morning with organic peanut butter and mixed berry spread.
