Today we’d like to introduce you to Anne Minor.
Hi Anne, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
A friend of mine and I wanted to learn how to decorate Christmas cookies so we decided to take a cookie decorating class from a lady in the area. It was a 5 hour class that taught us how to make the dough and decorate the details of a sugar cookie. I went back for three other classes. I asked lots of questions and took notes on where to buy all the supplies. I was hooked. I started decorating cookies for family and friends for all kinds of different celebrations. I took a few online classes and watched a lot of videos and from there, it just took off. Decorating the cookies was my happy place because I was in my creative space. My story is the typical story where I had no intention on doing it as a business. I wanted to do it for fun but was encouraged by many that I should try selling them. So in January of 2020, I set out to get my food handlers license, business license and my Cottage Food License through the County of Riverside to have an In Home Bakery. If I was going to do it I wanted to do it right. By the end of January 2020 I had all my licenses and started my Instagram account under “Minor Bakery” so that I could market myself. My vision was more than custom decorated sugar cookies. I wanted to eventually offer much more so I chose to use the word “bakery” in my business name. My main focus was to start out with the decorated sugar cookies. I had a friend who started her own business at the same time called “The Craft House” which was also located in Temecula over in the Vail Headquarters area. She provides lots of craft-type classes and I was able to start teaching cookie decorating classes there. About one month into it is when the shutdown hit because of Covid so I had to get creative with the business and started offering DIY Cookie Decorating Kits for each holiday and did porch pickup. As things began to open up, I slowly started back up my cookie decorating classes and getting my name out in the Temecula Valley area. I was able to meet lots of other small businesses who would spread the word and it started to grow from there. I was starting to get a lot more orders but I would say it really started to get busy in May of 2021 so my husband and I decided that I could take it to the next level and do it full time. So in June of 2021, I put in my notice at work and began my venture. We have been growing ever since with orders and doing booths. I have been blessed to have the help of my daughter who helps with all the behind the scenes extra work that really isn’t seen. She preps all the boxes for the DIY Kits and classes, puts the ingredient labels and business labels on the boxes along with helping with the decor of the booths and helping me with the sales at the booth. I’ve been blessed to hire a social media person, Kassie, to help because let’s face it… I am not good at taking pictures or how to really promote on social media. We are having fun with our little bakery and have big plans for the future.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
There is always obstacles and challenges. Obviously, the biggest one was the shutdown right when we started but we got creative and did what we could. For me, one of the challenges is to know what I can and can’t do with the business. Meaning knowing what I need to let go of and get help with. Recognizing my strengths and weaknesses and learning to be okay with delegating so that the business can grow. There’s mistakes to be made when growing a business which means learning from them and how to overcome them.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
We are a licensed “In-Home Bakery” in the Temecula Valley area. We are known for our Cookie Decorating Classes and Custom Decorated Cookies. One of the things that I get told often by our customers is that they love how our cookies are soft and not crunchy. They are always genuinely surprised and it keeps them coming back. The heart behind our business is our customers. We truly want to provide the dessert that adds that special touch to their event or celebration. We love seeing their faces light up when they pick up their cookies. Seeing that is what makes me happy. Customer Service is a big one for us and that is what we want to set us apart. I enjoy the personal touch when talking with them about their orders. I want them to know that I will do everything I can to make it extra special for them. We also get orders for the other baked goods on our website and get compliments on those as well. Our goal is to grow that side of the business as well. Our website and Instagram is a great place to know what’s the latest on Minor Bakery and what classes we have coming up.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
I absolutely love our community here in the Temecula Valley. It’s not too big and not too small. I love running into friends and customers that I consider my friends when I am out and about. I love our Old Town Temecula and the vibe there for shopping and eating. I really enjoy going to Vail Headquarters off of Temecula Parkway and eating at the hole in the wall restaurants there or grabbing a coffee. Those are the businesses that make our community special. It’s a great place to just sit and relax while enjoying a meal or coffee.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@minorbakery.com
- Website: www.minorbakery.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/minorbakery/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/minorbakery
Image Credits
Kassie O’Driscoll
