A native of North Carolina's Piedmont has transformed her family's holiday tradition into a full-time business, and the concept originated in her grandmother's kitchen.
While growing up in her hometown of Burlington, Becca Wright remembers baking "pennies," or bite-sized cheesy biscuits, in the kitchen with her dad during busy holiday seasons. Her dad grew up doing the same with his mom, Wright's "grandbetty," who invented the homemade snack.
Wright was frequently asked by her family to deliver the freshly baked "pennies" — her grandmother's spin on traditional Southern cheese straws — to family and friends as holiday gifts. They often raved over the snack, which left Wright questioning why the cheesy biscuit bites weren't available to purchase in stores.
"That's when I started hearing all that feedback and I was like, 'Well, why is there not something like this out there on the market?'" she asked. "You've got your Southern cheese straws that are more floury and kind of crumbly. And then you have Cheez-Its, which just don't have that homemade taste or feel to them."
Years later, she's preserved her grandmother's recipe and turned it into a full-time snack company that's currently on the shelves of 300-plus retailers across 19 states. Wright's Charlotte-based business, Piedmont Pennies, sells original and spicy chipotle-flavored cheesy biscuit crackers. She also sells cheesy, buttery and crispy "Penny Panko" in crumb form.
Her journey to reach that scale was long, but rewarding.
How Piedmont Pennies was born
Wright largely credits the success of Piedmont Pennies to her time spent at UNC Chapel Hill. She enrolled there as an undergraduate in 2012 and received a bachelor's degree in public health in 2016.
That same year, Wright moved to Washington, D.C., to work as an analyst at Deloitte, a global consulting firm. Still holding the idea of taking "pennies" to the market, Wright left that role, moved back to Chapel Hill in 2019 and enrolled in UNC Kenan-Flagler's MBA program.
"While I was there, Covid hit, and I had a lot of time to be at home and think about how I can actually bring this to market," she said.
During her time at graduate school, Wright started a remote internship at Facebook in the summer of 2020. She was offered a full-time position there a few months later, but she wasn't passionate about the role.
"In my gut, I just wasn't excited about it," Wright said. "And I knew something was wrong with that because everyone wanted to work there at the time."
In August 2020, she birthed Piedmont Pennies as her MBA project. Seeing the potential in that business idea, Wright launched the company's website and Instagram a month later. She originally baked the "pennies" in her home as a late-night gig after class. But once traction picked up, she knew she needed a bigger space.
"That's when I said 'Alright, if we're gonna do this, we've got to find a bigger kitchen,'" Wright said.
She turned down the job offer at Facebook and pursued Piedmont Pennies full time in November 2020. Wright rented a spot for six months at Carolina Commercial Kitchen in Charlotte before moving into the bigger space she's in now for her growing business.
"I always loved serving others, and it brought me so much joy doing that," she said. "I knew that I wanted to be in hospitality and to share with others to make them happy. You don't always expect to be doing what you're doing."
Keeping the 'stay cheesin' mission alive
Wright's cheesy biscuit crackers can serve as versatile, premium snack. She said they're often used on a charcuterie board, paired with a glass of wine or salami.
The cracker doesn't contain any preservatives. It is made with seven ingredients, including 100% sharp cheddar cheese. A "pennies" package or cheese crumbs sell for $15 each, and a jar is priced at $14. The product is available at local shops such as Pilot Brewing, The Culture Shop and Reid's Fine Foods.
"I want Piedmont Pennies to be synonymous with the Southern snack and the most delicious premium gift to give people," Wright said.
She is now working on growing her company's brand and enhancing the quality of the snack. Wright also anticipates to add new flavors and revamp her packing for the business.
Wright added that her most important goal derives from her company's motto — to help people "stay cheesin."
