An Alaska Baker's Journey

Our ovens and big equipment are ordered!  We are so excited!  This has been a huge process,  researching equipment for six months meant contacting many different equipment vendors.  First we were looking for a company that offered most or all of our desired equipment to make logistics easier to get items sent across the country then packed onto a barge to sail across the Gulf of Alaska.  Being located on an Alaska island makes these things just a bit more difficult.  We narrowed it down to two different companies who were quick to return our calls and were so good at answering all our questions.  Empire Baking and Erica Record Baking Supply are both great companies.  They talked us through the process to zero in on what types of products we would be making and determine the equipment we would really need.  The oven is really the centerpiece of every bakery.  This is where the magic happens.  Deciding on the right size oven is key....

I have challenged myself to record our process as we grow into our bake shop.  I say grow because this is not something that just happened.  Each week I will attempt to highlight some part of the process with the goal that this will help us remember where we started and to see the incremental steps we take along the way.  I also hope that recording this journey may help someone else move toward achieving their dreams.   In 2014 I was a stay-at-home mom, homeschooling 4 kids ages 5 to 15.  We had been baking our own bread and other items since early on in our marriage, and the older kids had started to take over the weekly bread baking as part of their schooling.  I even taught some basic bread baking classes in the community.  Out of curiosity, Chad took a fresh loaf of bread to work one day to let people try it. He then asked if they would be interested in buying bread.  That day he came home with orders for 4 loaves, and our journey began....

I find that life is full of little decisions that lead us down winding paths and we can not foresee the destination ahead.  When my children were little I taught them to cook, and from there to bake bread, cookies, and cinnamon rolls.  On a regular spring day in May 2014 my then 13 year old daughter baked a couple loaves of sandwich bread for lunches as part of her homeschool assignment.   When my husband came home for lunch he made a sandwich on the fresh bread, and then took a loaf with him to share with some of the people at work.  He returned home with orders from people in the office to buy bread.  Within a couple of weeks we had established two baking days a week with regulars customers and were baking and delivering multiple loaves of bread and cookies as well as setting up at our local farmer's market.  That one day set us on a journey and a path to owning a business.   Teaching Alyssa to make cinnamon rolls Our first season at the Fa...

Bearfoot Bakery was started 8-ish years ago selling at the farmers market at the fairgrounds in Kodiak, Alaska. Over the years we've grown our product line and experience and have met many great people along the way. We've often dreamed of opening a store but it always seemed out of reach or just not the right time. Really, it never felt that we could ever be anything more than a home bakery. Last summer KANA announced plans for a new building, and we began looking into what it would take for us to open a shop. There have been many ups and downs in the 6-8 months since we began working on this project. Finances being a big one. We have worked hard to stay out of debt both as a business and personally. The equipment list has gotten long, as has the expense report. Up to this point that has been the biggest struggle. This week we signed a lease for a space. This is both terrifying and exciting. The planning, work, and money involved is overwhelming. However, we have...

What is the purpose of business?   An article written by Charles Handy in 2002 asked this question.  At that time there were many corporate scandals being reveled, and faith in the business world was shaken.  Handy writes " The great virtue of capitalism – that it provides a way for the savings of society to be used for the creation of wealth."  He continues, "to many, it seems that executives not long run their companies for the benefit of the consumers, or even for their shareholders and employees, but for their personal ambition and financial gain."   Handy states "The purpose of a business is not to make a profit.  It is to make a profit so that the business can do something more or better."   What is the purpose of Bearfoot Bakery?  We make high quality breads and pastries that are fresh, this is what we do.  Our purpose is to show love to our community.  We do this with fresh, wholesome products that have not av...

https://www.waspbarcode.com/buzz/10-hidden-costs-running-small-business  Cost/Profit can create a fine line in business.  The cost of making a product vs. what it can reasonably be sold for determine if a product is worth making.  In a bakery I am looking at cost all the time.  Cost doesn't mean just my ingredients, but it also has to include the labor.  Over the years I have battled this dilemma.  What can I reasonably charge for a product compared to the time invested into that product.  As food prices are going up, I have to evaluate if I can continue to make a product with the my current pricing, raise prices, or discontinue that product.   Here is an example.  I love brownies, but the cost of butter, chocolate, and other ingredients to make a single pan of brownies is around $10.  Add my time and other expenses invested in making brownies, and I would have to sell an 8x8 pan of brownies for $20, which seems excessive.  The...