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Key Takeaways Jacob Komarow turned an impulsive baklava-selling experiment at a concert in 2021 into Good Baklava, a New York City business.
After overcoming drug addiction, the 30-year-old built a reputation as the city’s viral “Baklava Guy.”
Good Baklava averaged more than $20,000 in monthly sales over a recent nine-month period, with revenue as high as $70,000 a month.
In June, outside Madison Square Garden, 30-year-old Jacob Komarow offered Knicks fans free baklava and went viral. The entrepreneur, known simply as the Baklava Guy, carried trays of flaky, pistachio-filled pastries to eager fans.
Komarow is the founder of Good Baklava, a roaming business that offers baklava on the street, from the back of a van, online or through temporary stands. The business does not yet have a permanent storefront.
Komarow sells the treats by approaching potential customers in city parks and at music festivals. A 12-pack of baklava costs around $30 on the site at the time of writing. In person, three pieces sell for $10 to $15, according to a recent report from CNBC.
After dropping out of high school and struggling with drug addiction, Komarow built a business and a new life, one syrupy sweet at a time. He was six months sober when he began selling baklava as a side hustle in 2021 and is now more than five years sober, per CNBC.
His videos handing out baklava earlier this year first caught fire on social media. Then, a June profile in The New York Times sent Good Baklava’s visibility into another orbit.
“The New York Times just started a baklava wildfire,” Komarow told CNBC. “All of a sudden, brands were reaching out to us to partner.”
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