Baking For Business Podcast

#Ep 78 : Three Money Making Products Every Home Baker Needs

• Chef Amanda Schonberg • Episode 78

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Ever wondered about the secret sauce to picking out the best products? Well, in today's episode, I'm spilling all the tea on the 3 products I can't live without.

In today's episode, I'm sharing three products that can propel your home baking venture to new heights. Each idea is a classification of a product so that you can modify it for your brand and start to see success.

No matter what niche you pick for your home baking business, these products will help you fill in the gaps and serve your clients more effectively.

In this episode you will learn:

  • The secret sauce to what 3 products you need for baking business success
  • How to modify these products to your brand to fit your home bakery business
  • Why your products should be unique to you
  • and so much more.

Ready to level up your business?
1.) Learn to level up your home bakery by clicking here
2.) Join the top program for bakers going digital by clicking here

Speaker 1:

Hey, sweet friends, my name is Chef Schaumburg. I started my baking business with the bottle of DeCerono and one Bundt Cake Pan. Fast forward to today, from news to magazines, speaking on national stages and more. I can truly say that baking has changed my life. So now, as a bakery business coach, I get to help others have the same success. I've helped hundreds of my students across the world in my global membership program create six-figure businesses, mainly from home.

Speaker 1:

The Baking for Business podcast is an extension of that, from actionable tips to valuable tools and resources that can impact you as a business owner. I truly believe y'all. We would never have been given a gift if we couldn't profit and prosper from it. So come on, darling. What are you waiting for? Hey, what's going on, sweet friends? Chef Schaumburg here, and welcome back to the Baking for Business podcast this week. I am so ecstatic to be with you guys because the past few weeks we've had a lot of different guests, which I've been so grateful for. You've heard amazing stories from some of my students and we've had some wonderful people. But I do love a good solo episode. I love when it's just you and I, because we can sit back and jam, and today's episode has been on my heart for a while.

Speaker 1:

So today I'm sharing with you guys three money-making products that every home baker should have in their business and why. Or treat maker or food entrepreneurs. But the reason why I'm sharing the why is because I think it's so important. I know what you're thinking. You're dying to hear what's she going to say. Is it a heart cake? Is it a cocoa bomb? Is it a cake jar? Like what's that? One thing that I should dive into. But what I'm actually going to share with you guys is the same layout that I use in my award-winning home bakery business and the same pathway that has allowed me to generate six figures as a home baker before my consulting company. And the reason why I want you guys to have this is because I think this information is something that is missing so much from our industry. So now, without any further ado, I'm going to get into the three products. Make sure you have pen and paper, and I would also love to hear from you guys. Tag me on Instagram I love when you guys tag me and let me know how this podcast helped and what product you're going to be adding to your baking business.

Speaker 1:

All right, one of the key things I see in a lot of groups is that whenever bakers are about to have a pop-up, they'll say, hey, you guys, I'm popping up here, what should I bring? Or what should I bake? And someone in California will say, oh, you should make strawberries, they're a top seller for me. Or someone in Texas will say, oh, you should do cookies. Cookies is the product you should do, that's a top seller for me. And then someone in New York might say, oh, you should do cake slices. I make tons of money with that. And so people usually pick out their products based on other people's feedback. Now, there's nothing wrong with that People are being kind and they're wanting to help. But the problem with that is that if none of those products align with your brand, then that could be one of the reasons why you find a disconnect in the products that you offer currently, and so these three items will help you to possibly fill in that gap, but also expand as you grow as a home baker, so that you're not leaving any money on the table, because I love, love, love for you guys to have multiple streams of revenue, all right.

Speaker 1:

So product number one is what I actually like to call a dual product. The reason why I call this a dual product is because it is something that can be served in the morning or is something that can be served in the evening. Too many bakers they offer a particular product, and then I meet a lot of bakers that say, chef, I want to be like you, I want to bake for corporations. I see you bake for iHeart Radio and CarMax and how do I get all those corporate accounts? And one of the first things I tell them is that, well, you have to first look at your offerings. A dual product is something that can be served in the morning and in the afternoon, and the reason being is because a survey based on hourlyio actually stated that most meetings take place at 10 am, and so what I find with a lot of my clients is that I'm not serving them my cupcakes and stuff like that, y'all.

Speaker 1:

I'm doing a lot of my breakfast boxes. These are things that consist of cinnamon rolls, croissants, fruit and stuff like that, and so I want you to look at your bakery business right now. If you don't have a dual product now, this could be any particular product, because, again, I'm not giving you something that works specifically for me, you have your own brand, and so that's one of the prime reasons why these are money making products is because when you stay within your brand and your own niche and you stay true to who you are, it's so much easier to sell. Think about things such as scones, things such as coffee cakes, things such as cinnamon rolls, things such as Madeleines. These are the type of products that we all should be having in our business muffins, croissants, stuff like that because they cater to a corporate client if they want it to place an order, which they normally do order for those early morning hours, and then also they give your menu some diversity, so that you're not leaving money on the table.

Speaker 1:

So the first money making product is a dual item. It's something that can be served in the morning as well as any other time of the day. The second money making product is a shelf stable product, and this one is one of my favorites, and the reason why we all need one of these is because there will come a time in which we get booked. You're doing the grinding, you're doing the marketing, you're putting yourself out there, your business is growing, and then you hit a point and you're like wow, I would really like to actually take more orders, but I just don't have more time.

Speaker 1:

And so what shelf stable products allow you to do is that, unlike, let's say, a wedding cake or particularly a dozen cupcakes, they can be made in advance and they last for a while, as well as some of these do not even require refrigeration, so you can actually leave them out. But as your client places an order, you can use these shelf stable products as a up sale, so you can add it on to any currently order that the person has, or you can use these shelf stable products as a giftable item. Now, this is why this is so important, because, especially around the holidays, people are normally making things for entertaining and guests, but they're not thinking about what product can I make that my client can actually turn around and give as a gift? This is another tip, especially in regards to corporate clients, because corporations they normally have what's called birthday club and stuff like that, and so they're looking to buy your item and give it to their employees. So, shelf stable items, things such as chocolates, barks, granola mixes, nuts you guys, there are so many things that are covered under the cottage fruit law that we don't think about spice, nuts, candy, pecans, things like this that can actually be made and packaged ahead of time. You can always have them on hand.

Speaker 1:

Another cool thing about shelf stable products is that I meet so many cakeers who are like, well, I need a 72 hour notice and I need this particular type of notice. But then I find they're trying to be full time, and here's the thing with that. When you're trying to be full time in business, your business needs to be making money every single day. But most bakers are weekend bakers. They're only used to doing orders on Thursday, friday, saturday when people are having parties, which is another reason why we go back to number one, where those dual products come in, because they can fill in that gap. Monday through Thursday. You got a couple of corporate clients. You do a couple of breakfast boxes, continental platters, stuff like that. You now have a little bit of diversity and you're not limiting your coins, honey. I don't want you just making money on the weekend, because when you're trying to do this thing full time, like I do, you have health insurance. The bills rise. All of that is on you, and so I'm not trying to just be a weekend lover.

Speaker 1:

With shelf stable products, I'm able to have something on hand. So if someone finds man, they call I can easily throw together a gift box, which is another idea. You can actually take multiple of your shelf stable items. You can put them together in a gift box. So now, not only do you have a product that's giftable, that you could possibly upsell, but you also have a product that you can put in a gift box for a same day order and because it's shelf stable, because it doesn't require any customization, it's not throwing you off and it's not throwing your coins off.

Speaker 1:

Now, hear me when I say this, because some people I know they catch a hissy fit. They're like I have to have a notice or there's no way I could do something same day. There is a market and I find there is nothing wrong with same day. Of course, obviously, you can't make a wedding cake same day and I don't expect you to do a dinosaur or a Paw Patrol cake same day. No, but if you had a granola mix and some spice pecans and some chocolate covered Oreos and a client called and they said, hey, I'm looking to send a gift to a relative that just died, you can easily take those shelf stable items. And yes, I say die, because every single day, people die. You always have to remember.

Speaker 1:

As a baker and treat maker, you are not just helping people celebrate birthdays. You have to celebrate all occasions, even when life has passed, and sympathy gifts are one of the biggest things that people do not offer in their business, but it's money that they leave on the table. And so, yes, I've had these calls where people call, and I can't tell that person oh, they should have died two weeks ago. I need to notice. No, so you take your shelf stable items, you put them together in a gift box and it also allows you to get off of your feet, so you're not really having to bake as much.

Speaker 1:

Chocolate covered Oreos, bark, mondiants, things like this that do not require much time. They're able to help you streamline your processes and increase production, but also because these things are low skill level. Once you start wanting to hire people in the business, maybe your son can help you. It's so much easier to train your son how to do a dozen gourmet chocolate covered Oreos or chocolate covered pretzels. There's this company called Fat Sunday. They only specialize in dip chocolate covered pretzels and they do them for corporate gifts, they do them for birthdays, everything. It is so much easier for you to teach a teenager how to do a set of chocolate covered pretzels than it is for you to teach them how to do a three layer cake or a wedding cake, so that's. Another really cool thing about shelf stable products is that when you're bringing help along into the business because they're easily able to be taught they can be made quicker, and the more things you have on hand, the more opportunities you have to fulfill that order. Also want to talk to you about one shelf stable product that a lot of people look over, that everyone can do.

Speaker 1:

Sugar cubes are big and I know so many of you guys who make your own vanilla extract, but you never think to take the vanilla and actually make gourmet sugar cubes. In fact, before recording this episode, I went ahead and hopped on Etsy. There are companies who are selling sugar cubes anywhere between $16 to $20. This is perfect because, let's say, you do a farmers market and someone is looking for a gift. You can take those vanilla beans. You can infuse them with the sugar that you already have. For those who don't know what a sugar cube is, it's literally that it's a cube of sugar that is infused, but it makes a wonderful gift. So around the holidays or around Valentine's Day, you have this shelf-stable item, especially for all my people who make their own vanilla extract. You can use that same item, use your same packaging. I don't want you going out there and investing in tons of other packaging, but now you have this product. That is amazing and people use sugar cubes for their tea, they use them for their coffee, they use them for their cocktail kits. So again, that's an item that you can add to your home bakery lineup. That really doesn't take much effort at all. Literally, you can make it in about five minutes.

Speaker 1:

Then think about things such as mixes. So like pancake mixes, granola mixes, those things are amazing and people love buying those things. But also, because you can make them on hand, they can rest for a while. So when I say products, this is the second realm of money-making products shelf-stable products. They're able to be made ahead of time. There's a way that everyone can infuse them in their business. They help you cut down on kitchen time and they allow you to capitalize on that last-minute sale. So think about some of those shelf-stable items.

Speaker 1:

I do know their laws vary per state. Some states are allowed to do chocolate, so don't say oh well, chef, I can do chocolate, find another one. You could probably do a granola mix. You can do a pancake mix. You can do the infused line of sugars. Trust me, the sky is the limit. So shelf-stable products is one of the products that everyone needs.

Speaker 1:

The last money-making product is a health-conscious product. Now, this isn't what you think. When I say health-conscious, I'm not speaking in terms of PEDO or anything like that, although that's not a bad thing to have, but you also want to have something that's a smaller quantity. So one of the things that my clients love is that I offer mini cupcakes. So if you're a cupcake-er out there, instead of offering the full-size, think about offering minis Also. You may find you can make more money, because with mini cupcakes you can charge $2 to $3 per mini, which is really giving you about five or six bucks on a regular cupcake, and people love paying that Also because they feel that a mini is half the size. In their mind it's kind of like it's half the portion. Thank you.

Speaker 1:

Mini pretzels the company that I mentioned earlier, fat Sunday. They actually don't even do full size pretzels. All of their pretzels are snapped in half. I'm like how cool is that? That way they eliminate waste. In case any pretzels ever come in and they're broken, every single pretzel can get used. But it's also a smaller serving size. So that's how they offer a health conscious item. They're taking a regular item and they're cut it in in half.

Speaker 1:

So the mini pretzel, the mini cupcake for all my people out there who are treat makers, who dip fruit instead of dipping it, just slice it up you can have fruit cups. Fruit cups are amazing because they're automatically vegan, right? Because they contain no dairy, no meat or anything like that. If you were to do a fruit cup or let's say, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries which berries are naturally low in sugar that's also a keto friendly option. So again, I'm not telling you to break out the xanthan gum and a coconut flour and learn something totally new. If you wanna do that, that's fine. But what I'm saying is, if you can make small modifications to the products that you already have, you're able to position them in a different way.

Speaker 1:

I find my clients love minis and the crazy thing is is when I do events, I'll sit back and I'll watch them eat three or four and I'm like well, you do know it's no longer a mini, but the mind doesn't think that way, right? So the way that we frame it, when it's placed in front of them, they feel like I'm making a healthier choice because I'm making a smaller choice. Another item I like to do this with is with my brownie bites, especially for my corporate clients. Rather than offering the full cut brownies, I use my same cupcake tin, right, because I don't like buying tons of equipment. I'm not the type of baker that gets shiny object syndrome. My storage is already overflowing and I make miniature brownie bites and so that way that is another way that clients can have something that is a smaller serving and it makes them feel good. So think about that in your business.

Speaker 1:

For all my cookies out there, I know one girl. She does sugar cookies. She has all her leftover royal icing and she just makes what's called dots, and so she makes real small versions of her sugar cookies, puts the leftover icing, puts them in a bag and calls them happy dots and people go crazy eating those things, because some people really do enjoy eating a sugar cookie. They don't need the technique, they don't need the decoration. They're like me. I'm a big girl, I just want a cookie. You don't have to make it. You know, look like flowers and daisies or whatever. I just want to eat it.

Speaker 1:

Another thing for my artisan and gourmet cookiers is think about how you can make small versions of your cookies things such as chocolate chip, your red velvet, those type of cookies. Now you can actually take those cookies and pair them with sauces Such as Nutella, biscoff, stuff like that, and now you actually have a cookie dipping option. This is also perfect for stocking stuffers, because you can take smaller versions of cookies, put them in a cellophane gift bag I know what I'm trying to say Put it in a gift bag, wrap it, and then now those miniature versions actually become a giftable option. And so that's another way no matter what you are, who you make in this industry that you can offer a smaller version of your already selling product in order to have a healthier version or alternative to offer to your client. All right, y'all.

Speaker 1:

So dual products, shelf-stable products, health-conscious products those are three products that you guys can all add into your business. Those are three products that I use all the time in order for you to generate more revenue into your home baking business, as well as a little bit more time. What I also love about all three of these items is, if you also take all three and put them together, they make an amazing gift box, and so gift boxes are one of those things that are really, really popular, and they can always be ordered from either a corporate client or from a regular client, because it's something that your client can get and they're able to turn around and gift it to someone else. So, definitely, I guess I gave you four or a bonus, but think about adding those things into your business. I hope this helped. Do me a favor. If you have not already, tag me on Instagram. I would love to know which one of these money-making offers are you going to add to your business, or which one of these money-making options are you going to start implementing so that you can see a little bit more success.

Speaker 1:

Thank you, guys. So much for listening. I appreciate you guys. So the moon and back. I hope you have a beautiful day. I'll talk to you later and bye for now. What's up you?