Sydney entrepreneur Iris Aebi turns her search for powdered ube into e-commerce brand Ooh Bae
Sydney-based first-time business owner Iris Aebi launched Ooh Bae, a powdered ube blend, online in April 2026 after struggling to find the ingredient locally, SBS Filipino reported. She is targeting the United States as her next market within the coming year.
Sydney-based first-time business owner Iris Aebi developed her own powdered ube blend after struggling to find the ingredient locally, SBS Filipino reported on 3 November. Her research and development took between six and twelve months before she launched the product online in April 2026.
The online business is called Ooh Bae. Its website describes the brand as "Proudly Australian/Filipino Owned" and calls ube "the purple yam that Filipinos have loved for generations."
Why she made it
On the brand's About page, Aebi writes that she grew up having ube, primarily in traditional desserts like halo halo, ube cake, ube halaya and ube shakes, and that growing up in Australia, Filipino restaurants and ingredients were few and far between. When she wanted to make those desserts for her own children, she writes, the only ube she could get access to was synthetic ube flavouring.
She also writes that she ordered many "ube powders" online only to find they were taro or purple sweet potato labelled as ube. She set out to make her own blend that is ready to mix, and added hydrolysed marine collagen peptides and pre- and post-biotics. She calls the product "a little nod to my heritage every day."
The product
According to the brand's FAQ page, Ooh Bae uses raw ube from the Philippines which is then converted to powder form, and the Superblend is ready to mix without adding extra sugars or sweeteners. The FAQ lists collagen peptides, vitamin C and pre- and post-biotics in the blend, and suggests mixing it into drinks or foods such as yoghurt bowls, oats, chia pudding, pancakes and cupcakes.
Startup costs and next market
| Item (according to Aebi, per SBS Filipino) | Amount |
|---|---|
| Initial investment: research and development, product manufacturing, packaging, branding and photography | $15,000 |
| Separate budget for a social media team | $20,000 |
SBS Filipino reported that the social media agreement grants her perpetual usage rights, allowing her to use, re-purpose and distribute the content indefinitely without time restrictions or ongoing royalty payments. Aebi is targeting the United States as her next market within the coming year; her products are currently available only in Australia, and the brand's FAQ says it ships to Australia only "for now".
SBS Filipino also cited a Statista projection that Australia's e-commerce market will grow from $31.3 billion to $85.09 billion by 2031.
Read the web like we doTurn any page into clean, ready-to-use data with Firecrawl"Follow your gut. If you have that burning desire, follow it. You have to trust yourself and keep going. There are many days when I think, 'Oh, it would be easier if I just focused on my full-time job, switched off at five o'clock and didn't have to think about anything else.' But it's about sticking with it and continuing to push forward. That's what's going to make a difference."
Key facts
- Sydney-based first-time business owner Iris Aebi launched her powdered ube blend online in April 2026 after six to twelve months of research and development, SBS Filipino reported.
- Her online business, Ooh Bae, describes itself as "Proudly Australian/Filipino Owned".
- According to Aebi, her initial investment was $15,000, with a separate $20,000 budget for a social media team.
- The brand says it uses raw ube from the Philippines converted to powder form, and it currently ships to Australia only.
- Aebi is targeting the United States as her next market within the coming year.
Official sources
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