The Baker’s Notebook- September (Part 2)

So much has been in the works behind the scenes for, honestly, MONTHS.

Every summer, the heat practically kills most bakery businesses. We do not thrive, we suffer. Slow sales, 100-degree weather with you standing by hot ovens that are on ALL DAY, and melting frosting. These are just a few of the torments of summer. Add in a hot market on top of that…. wait, add in 25 hot markets, and it’s absolute misery.

Last summer, I vowed to move up north. This summer, I was offered an alternative. My friends, Liz and Jesse, who own Smor Bakeri, had suggested a few times that I should set up inside their shop. I don’t know why I didn’t take it seriously. Maybe because it was mentioned so casually, I wasn’t sure if they were serious.

So this summer, after a series of miserably hot, slow markets…. with low sales, I asked if they really meant it. They did.

I’m sort of impatient about these things, so I started planning immediately. What would it look like? What day is best? Where would I set up? How does it all work?

During the planning, Liz and I both got excited. We started businesses around the same time waaaaaaaayyyyy back in the day, when they still had Grind as just a food truck. Two baby business owners who literally rooted for each other.

Not only have they carried my gluten free bread as some part of their businesses over the years, but I have sent countless GF friends and customers to them because they are so supportive.

When covid hit, Liz called me immediately and we panicked together. Almost every food business is just one tiny disaster away from shutting down- because the margins are razor thin. And we were no exception. And here we are, years later, still digging out of the holes that started that day. It’s trauma bonding at its finest.

We have 16 years of shared history. Ups, downs, growth, all of it.

Needless to say, they were the ones who wanted wholesale back. They offered up their commercial kitchen (on their off days) so I could use it and get certified again. The new way of doing business is no longer “every man for himself.”

And here we are, excited again for all the things. We hope to plan events together- that’s Liz’s department, but I’ll participate for sure. And I dream of leaving work with my hair down and a much cuter (non-sweaty) outfit.

I used to plan my life out years in advance, but now I never know what is going to happen. I don’t know if I LOVE the unknown, but I get it.