Home Bakery: How to Start a Baking Business From The Comfort of Your Home
Do you love and enjoy baking? Are you the go-to person for everything related to baking? Do you binge-watch baking competitions on TV wishing you could compete to earn the grand prize to open your bakery? Then you might want to consider earning profit from your ability to bake yummy treats. If you’re good at baking and have quite an interest in turning it into a profession, this is exactly where we talk in detail about how to start a bakery business from the comfort of your home that is we will talk in detail about a home bakery. A home bakery business or a bakery business, in general, can include multiple threats like:
- Cakes and cupcakes
- Cookies
- Brownies and bars
- Pies
- Muffins
- Bread and buns
- Pastries
- Biscotti and Biscuits
- Dog treats.
Sometimes if your bread and buns are tasty and soft enough, people may also refer to your brand as the bread company which brings nothing but word of mouth advertising to your brand and bakery.
Here’s an overview of how to turn your passion for baking into a profession.
Pros of a Home Bakery
Do what you love, be innovative and creative while you’re at it.
Easy to start as it requires a smaller amount of capital and human resource initially
There’s always a market for yummy baked goods
You can even sell locally and/or online that is globally or nationally, depending on your baked good’s ability to be delivered or shipped.
Cons of a Home Bakery
Food service businesses are usually regulated by the said state’soccupational or health department, so you’ll need to find out your state’s laws regarding the sale of food items baked from home and make sure you comply
Many times, a lot of states require that your baking equipment (i.e. mixers and spoons) and supplies (i.e. flour) be separate from your personal cooking use. In some cases, you’ll need a separate kitchen, and having a separate kitchen would require a lot of capital. Some states allow you to use your kitchen, but you’ll still need separate equipment and supplies which is again a capital-intensive procedure.
You may end up baking a lot and yet not selling enough to earn the desired amount of income as your family may love your cooking, your customers may not and competition might be tough and you’ll need to know how to stand out in the crowd with your innovativeness and creativeness
If you become successful considerably, you’ll soon need to move out of your home bakery business.
The things you need to start a home bakery or a smart baking company
To start a smart baking company, not only you must know how to bake and prepare great delicacies but also there are other requirements which you should know of:
Any licenses or inspections required by your state, county, and/or city. A health inspector may visit your home.
Sufficient skills and knowledge of safe food preparation and potential dietary issues. For example, if you have lactose intolerant clients approach you, you must warn them of milk or milk-based products which you have used in your concoctions where a retail or food service background would be helpful.
Ample supply of ingredients and enough room to store them including regular shopping regime and good suppliers who provide you with great quantity and quality at reasonable or wholesale price.
An understanding of your competition and how your baked goods will stand out in the crowd or how you can counter-attack your competition and stand out using your innovative and creative baked goods.
How to stare a home bakery outlet
Research and take notes of the laws and regulations of your state regarding food service businesses.
Obtain the required licenses and permits to start your business. Your city or county government officials will have this information. You might be able to get the details you need and file for your license online.
Research whether or not you need to collect/pay sales tax or other taxes on your food items. Often, you can get your sales tax permit online. They’re usually free, but require you to pay the sales tax monthly or sometimes quarterly, on the items you sell.
Get an LLC( Limited Liability Company) incorporated into other business entities (not a sole proprietorship) to best protect your assets from a lawsuit if someone should get sick or have problems with your food items. If you have a partner in your venture, you’ll want to set up LLP (Limited Liability Partnership)
Write a business plan and put it into action
Decide what types of baked goods to sell. Starting, it will be easiest to focus on one or two items, such as bread or cookies. As you settle into your business, learn what’s profitable, and what your customers like, you can expand your menu. Also, consider what will make your brand or bread company stand out. For example, are your items made from all organic ingredients? Are they gluten-free?
Order packaging and labels for your goods.
Bake your goodies and sell your treats. Create a marketing and advertising plan on how you’ll find and reach your market. Ideas include taking them to your farmer’s market, sell them online (you can have online ordering with personal delivery, or you can ship your items if they’re sturdy enough for shipping), and/or consign them in local cafes, restaurants, and other shops that sell food. You might consider starting a food blog or online food magazine to help promote your product, plus it can become an additional source of income.
As we’ve mentioned having a micro-bakery has its pros with cons so it’s for you to decide if you want a capital intensive bakery franchise or a labor-intensive one.