Four friends from Orem, Utah, turned a family cinnamon roll recipe into a startup in 2022. Chrisi Hammer, her husband Matt, and their friends Brian and Kass Martin launched the venture after years of home‑baking experiments.
The buns trace back to Chrisi Hammer’s mother, Mema, who perfected a cinnamon roll recipe in the 1970s. Mema’s version of the dough, enriched with a creamy frosting, became the foundation of the brand’s flavor profile.
After creating an Instagram page, the team sold out within minutes and opened a storefront before pivoting to frozen wholesale. The rapid demand forced the founders to scale beyond hand‑delivered trays.
Sunshine Buns first stocked regional grocers such as Hy‑Vee and Gelson’s, before landing in Target and Costco freezer aisles nationwide. Each roll contains real cream‑cheese frosting, 8 grams of protein and comes in three flavors: original, cookies‑and‑cream and strawberries‑and‑cream.
The new Series A capital will boost capacity, inventory and marketing, with Kass Martin saying the goal is to make the buns a staple in every freezer aisle. Local customers, like the Patel family who now pick up a box at their nearest Target, are already enjoying the convenience. The company plans to ramp up production by Q3 2026 to meet the expanded retailer orders.