Category: Honing Your Craft

  • Starting a cottage food bakery is a dream for many, but as orders start rolling in, scaling up can feel overwhelming. The good news? It doesn’t have to be. With a few smart tweaks, you can scale your business without losing the charm (or your sanity). Here’s how. 1. Work Smarter, Not Harder As orders increase,…

  • I get this question all the time and the answer is, “A food scientist is not always needed. It’s product specific.” Let’s dig into that. Here are some reasons why you might need a food scientist: Most small food businesses do not need a food scientist. Here’s what to expect if you hire one: In…

  • The 4 Biggest Challenges Facing Small Food Businesses

    From sourcing ingredients to accelerating sales, since the pandemic, the challenges facing small food business owners have become much larger. A specialty confection producer recently told me that if her business doesn’t make money this year, she’s done because she can earn more money working fewer hours back in corporate consulting. The producer is stocked…

  • First Place

    Pitch slams are hard. It’s hard to get out there and show up. It takes grit. It takes courage. Winning a pitch slam is a skill. And still, do it. Here are some tried and true tips that work, followed by areas where there may be room for improvement, and we’ll end with a few…

  • oops graphic

    Over and over, when approaching new wholesale buyers, new (and existing!) food businesses make easily correctable tactical errors. Here are the top six pitfalls: As the founder, you’re excited to get a new account. That’s understandable. Saying “yes” to accounts that are outside your region, not aligned with your known target customer, beyond your current…

  • Question Markets Graphic

    Does this sound familiar? “I have this dream of starting a food business. Of being a foodpreneur. I’ve been thinking about making my granola for people; everyone wants my granola, everybody asks me for it.” Is this a good time to start a food business? It’s spring. New You? The barriers to entry for starting…

  • Entrance of Crafted Kitchen

    Here’s a look inside Crafted Kitchen.  Beyond the stainless steel and commercial-grade equipment, this is where magic happens. This isn’t just a space for cooking; it’s a nurturing ground for dreams, camaraderie, and shared accomplishments. Imagine a group of culinary enthusiasts coming together, not just chefs and food entrepreneurs, but also product makers, consumer packaged…

  • Eat the Frog Image

    Eat the Frog

    Mark Twain said, and I paraphrase, “If you need to eat a frog, eat it first thing in the morning, and if you have to eat two, eat the bigger one first.” If you’re working on your business, you’ve got to learn to do this…eat the frog.  Here’s what it means: we all have things…

  • kneading dough

    I have helped hundreds of food business entrepreneurs and now I want to help you make your food business dreams a reality. Whether you want to be successful at farmer’s markets, online or store shelves, we believe Crafted Kitchen (and this blog) is your secret ingredient. We can show you how to avoid an expensive…