Episode Show Notes:

You've done the work.

You've costed your recipes, built a pricing system you trust, and you're not just guessing at your margins anymore.

So … why does the money still feel tight?

In this episode, I’m talking about a concept called “micro vs. macro thinking” — and making the case that MOST bakery owners are only operating with half the picture. If you've ever felt like you're doing everything right and still not seeing the financial results you expected, this episode is for you.

Key Takeaways:

• There's a critical difference between understanding what your recipes cost vs. understanding whether your business is actually working financially — and most bakery owners only have visibility through one of these lenses
• Three real-world examples of bakery owners who have solid pricing strategies but are still losing ground financially — and what was hiding at the bigger-picture level
• Learn what it actually looks like to operate with both the micro and macro view, and why having BOTH is what separates bakers who are constantly in “survival mode” from those who build genuinely sustainable businesses
• Find out where to start if you're hearing this and realizing the big-picture view is the piece you've been missing!

Resources + Links:

• Free Bakery Profit Audit — a quick financial checkup & first step toward the “macro” picture
• If you still need help with costing your recipes (the “micro” level), Recipe Costing Essentials is a great place to start
• Got a question you'd like me to answer on the podcast? Email me! hello@bakerybusinessacademy.com
• Join our Bakery Owners Facebook Group to connect with fellow bakers and continue the conversation

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Have a question or topic you want covered on a future episode? Send me a message—I love hearing from you!

Episode Show Notes:

It's the question everyone's secretly Googling but rarely gets a straight answer to: how much money can you ACTUALLY make running a bakery?

In this episode, I’m cutting through the vague, overly optimistic answers and giving you a real, practical framework for understanding your own earning potential — grounded in actual numbers, not hope or fear.

If you've ever wondered whether the math could ever really work in your favor and how much money you REALLY make running a bakery business - this one's for you.

Key Takeaways:

• When estimating their income potential, most bakery owners are working from either way too much optimism or way too much fear. We’ll talk about how to shift this thinking, and ground your income goals in reality.
• The benchmark profit percentage that well-run bakeries typically hit, and what it means for your bottom line
• The 7 specific inputs that determine how much money your bakery can actually make (every single one is within your control)
• Why growing your revenue isn't always the answer to earning more money (and what to focus on, instead)

Resources + Links:

• Free Bakery Profit Audit — a 15-minute financial check-in for bakery owners: [Link in show notes]
• Bakery Budget Helper — an interactive bakery budgeting tool that guides you through building a real working budget for your business - following the same process Meg uses with her private coaching clients
• Got a question you'd like me to answer on the podcast? Email me! hello@bakerybusinessacademy.com
• Join our Bakery Owners Facebook Group to connect with fellow bakers and continue the conversation

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Did you enjoy this episode? If so, I’d be very grateful if you'd leave a rating or review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!

Have a question or topic you want covered on a future episode? Send me a message—I love hearing from you!

Episode Show Notes:

Getting your first orders is a huge deal — and you should feel genuinely proud of that.

But early momentum is also one of the trickiest stages of building a bakery business, and it's where a lot of talented bakers unknowingly set themselves up for a frustrating plateau down the road.

In this episode, Meg breaks down what's really happening when your business starts to move — and why being busy is not the same thing as being profitable. If you've got orders coming in and things are starting to click, this one is for you.

Key Takeaways:

• Why the excitement of early traction can actually mask a bigger problem — and what to watch for before it catches up with you
• The real reason so many bakers end up with a full order book and an empty bank account (and why it's more common than you'd think)
• Three specific things to focus on right now to make sure the business you're building is actually working for you
• How to start looking at your numbers without fear — because your numbers aren't a verdict, they're just information

Resources + Links:

• Recipe Costing Essentials - our beginner-friendly recipe costing system that’ll have you accurately & easily costing your recipes in an afternoon
• Free Bakery Profit Audit — a 15-minute financial check-in for bakery owners: [Link in show notes]
• Got a question you'd like me to answer on the podcast? Email me! hello@bakerybusinessacademy.com
• Join our Bakery Owners Facebook Group to connect with fellow bakers and continue the conversation

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Did you enjoy this episode? If so, I’d be very grateful if you'd leave a rating or review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!

Have a question or topic you want covered on a future episode? Send me a message—I love hearing from you!

If you've been spending more time on your logo than on actually selling your baked goods … this episode is for you.

Today, we’re getting real about the "overengineering" trap that keeps so many bakers stuck before they ever make their first sale — and I’ll be sharing exactly where your energy needs to go instead (especially in those early days).

Key Takeaways:

• Your brand colors, website, and Instagram aesthetic aren't what's going to make your bakery profitable
• The story of how Spilt Milk went from a scrappy farmers market table to a seven-figure business — and what we didn't spend money on along the way
• The three things every baker should focus on before worrying about branding or polish
• Why getting in front of real customers early is the most valuable market research you'll ever do

Resources + Links:

• Recipe Costing Essentials - our beginner-friendly recipe costing system that’ll have you accurately & easily costing your recipes in an afternoon
• Free Bakery Profit Audit — a 15-minute financial check-in for bakery owners: [Link in show notes]
• New York Times article on successful home baking businesses
• Got a question you'd like me to answer on the podcast? Email me! hello@bakerybusinessacademy.com
• Join our Bakery Owners Facebook Group to connect with fellow bakers and continue the conversation

Episode Show Notes:

Are you actually profitable in your bakery business — or just busy?

In this episode, I’m walking you through a simple 15-minute Bakery Profit Audit designed to help you stop guessing about your numbers. If you’ve ever felt exhausted, fully booked, and somehow still unsure whether you’re truly making money… this one’s for you.

We’ll talk about why “busy” doesn’t automatically mean “profitable,” the hard lessons I learned scaling wholesale, and the four financial checks every bakery owner should be able to answer with confidence.

And yes — I’m sharing the exact framework you can use to run the numbers yourself in about 15 minutes!

Key Takeaways:

• Why being busy is not the same thing as being profitable (and how that mistake nearly cost us big)
• The 4 simple financial checks that reveal what’s really going on in your business
• Subsidizing your bakery’s bottom line with your own unpaid labor makes your bakery look more profitable on paper than it truly is
• Avoiding your numbers prevents progress in your bakery business
• How to stop treating tax season like the only time you look at your P&L
• A free 15-minute tool you can use to audit your profitability today

Resources + Links:

• Download the free Bakery Profit Audit and work through the framework yourself. It’s a quick financial checkup designed to help you answer one powerful question:
• Got a question you'd like me to answer on the podcast? Email me! hello@bakerybusinessacademy.com
• Join our Bakery Owners Facebook Group to connect with fellow bakers and continue the conversation

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Did you enjoy this episode? If so, I’d be very grateful if you'd leave a rating or review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!

Have a question or topic you want covered on a future episode? Send me a message—I love hearing from you!

You’ve dialed in your pricing.
You’ve built your budget.
You understand your labor and food costs.

Now what?

If you’re trying to grow your bakery this year — more weddings, more catering, more foot traffic, more wholesale — your online presence can’t afford to be a brick.

In this episode, we're breaking down one of the most overlooked revenue leaks in small bakery businesses - and it's not an ugly website, haphazard social media strategy, or even rude customer service...

It's a broken or unclear customer journey.

In 2026, having an online presence is no longer optional — it’s the center of your sales engine. And if customers can’t figure out what to do in the first few seconds of landing on your page…they’re gone. And someone else gets the sale.

Stop "bricking" your customers this year!

Key Takeaways:

• Why pouring gasoline on your marketing efforts should come after your bakery’s financial foundation is solid
• What “Bricking Your Customers” really is — and how it’s quietly costing your bakery thousands of dollars
• Why your online presence should be the center of your customer journey in 2026
• The simple 3-second rule that determines whether customers stay or bounce
• How to do a super lightweight, no-cost online audit of your bakery business (no tech skills required!)
• Where to look first if business feels slow or inconsistent

Resources + Links:

• Use AI tools like ChatGPT or Claude to help audit your website copy and customer journey
• Need help dialing in your financial foundation first? Check out Bakery Finance Essentials
• Want help walking through your customer journey together? Email me about scheduling a personalized marketing audit for your bakery business before I go on mat leave! You can reach Meg directly at: hello@bakerybusinessacademy.com
• Got a question you'd like me to answer on the podcast? Email me! hello@bakerybusinessacademy.com
• Join our Bakery Owners Facebook Group to connect with fellow bakers and continue the conversation

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Did you enjoy this episode? If so, I’d be very grateful if you'd leave a rating or review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!

Have a question or topic you want covered on a future episode? Send me a message—I love hearing from you!

Episode Description:

In today’s episode, I’m sitting down with someone very near and dear to my heart — Amy Gorski, owner of Poppy Bakery in Milwaukee, WI, and a former kitchen manager and head baker at Spilt Milk. Amy has had one of the most intentional, inspiring, hard-won journeys to bakery ownership I’ve ever seen, and in this conversation she opens up about the decisions, discipline, and deep commitment to quality that have shaped her business.

From her years of working in some of the Midwest’s most respected kitchens, to her methodical plan for gaining the skills she needed, to the realities of farmers’ market life, to launching Poppy Bakery and earning Best Bakery in Milwaukee within months — Amy shares it all. This is an episode full of honesty, heart, and so many takeaways for any baker dreaming of their next step.

Key Takeaways:

• The mindset shift that allowed Amy to confidently move from “someday” to opening her own bakery
• Why she chose not to pursue wholesale — and how that decision transformed the consistency, quality, and guest experience at Poppy
• How 14 years of working for other chefs became her greatest asset (and why she believes young bakers should avoid management too early)
• The surprising tough-love realities of farmers’ market life — and how those long, grueling weekends prepared her for brick-and-mortar success
• What helped Poppy Bakery grow a loyal community fast and earn city-wide recognition within months of opening

Resources + Links:

• Poppy Bakery - Check out Milwaukee’s best new bakery!
• Follow Amy on Instagram
• Got a question you'd like me to answer on the podcast? Email me! hello@bakerybusinessacademy.com
• Visit Bakery Business Academy's website for more information about our courses, programs, and private coaching with Meg
• Join our Bakery Owners Facebook Group to connect with fellow bakers and continue the conversation

If your bakery is feeling the post-holiday sales slump right now—you’re not alone. In this episode of Kitchen Notes, Meg walks through a calm, strategic 5-step plan to help you assess the dip, figure out where it's coming from, and create a realistic game plan to recover revenue without panic or burnout.

Whether January is slow for you, or your dip hits in July or October, this episode will give you a framework you can return to any time the numbers feel off.

Key Takeaways:

• Why seasonal dips are normal (and even predictable) in bakery businesses—and how to plan for them
• The first number you must know before you can rebound from a sales dip
• How to analyze which parts of your business are underperforming so you can stop guessing
• Creative, low-effort promo ideas that can help you quickly fill the revenue gap
• The one action step that most bakery owners skip when they’re feeling stressed or discouraged—but that can make or break your momentum

Resources + Links:

• Bakery Finance Essentials – our self-paced online e-course course designed for bakery owners who want to get more confident with their numbers
• Got a question you'd like me to answer on the podcast? Email me! hello@bakerybusinessacademy.com
• Join our Bakery Owners Facebook Group to connect with fellow bakers and continue the conversation
  
  

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Did you enjoy this episode? If so, I’d be very grateful if you'd leave a rating or review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!

Have a question or topic you want covered on a future episode? Send me a message—I love hearing from you!