Today we’d like to introduce you to Mina Gibson.
Mina, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
After finding myself at a crossroads, feeling as if the Universe was forcing me to close one door that I had known for almost two decades, I realized it was either go with the flow or continue swimming against the current. It’s exhausting swimming against the current.
Out of fear and being cozy in my comfort zone, I ignored the knocking on my door for a long time. YEARS. Swim, swim against the current I did until I couldn’t any longer. Then life did for me what I couldn’t bring myself to do. It phased the one thing I knew and loved for almost two decades out of my life.
As a hairstylist, I loved everything about it. The creativity, visiting with my amazing clients, the freedom of making my own hours and the lucrative aspect of it was icing on the cake. Along my career, I’ve been on a reality makeover show for Fox TV, have had the pleasure of doing hair and makeup on sets including a few photoshoots for a yoga magazine cover. Even my day to day salon life, I loved everything about it. So imagine my frustration and confusion and swimming against the current when I noticed it slipping away. Slowly, I’d lose clients. Sickness, moving, can’t afford it, you name it…now this is where I say the Universe started to phase hairstyling out of my life. I was never going to QUIT something I loved so much. Even when it became harder to justify my current situation. I started to lose money going into work. Not able to make salon rent (rent is HIGH in North County Coastal SD. I worked in Solana Beach as booth rent and it’s a mortgage) and my husband helping when I needed it, even paying for my salon supplies and me worrying about making my car payment, I knew something had to give. It’s amazing how much we fight to keep something we’ve known and loved for so long. Even when it’s brought so much stress lately. I held on with white knuckles, saying “it’ll get better, it has to.”
So the Universe was like the mama eagle, taking away all of the fluffy padding and comforts of the eaglet’s nest, giving me room to spread my wings and take the leap but I was hunkering down in the bare, uncomfortable nest. All the while, some strange yearning and crazy fantasy that I’ve had for over a decade kept creeping into my head and heart. Ever since I first watched the movie ‘It’s Complicated’ with Diane Keaton, I had a dream of a bakery. You know that scene when she goes to her bakery at night with Steve Martin, both stoned and now with the munchies? Haha. Oh, wow. That bakery. Those shelves lined with the most beautiful pastries and packages of cookies and candy with bows and ribbons. Sigh. Yes. I wanted this. I didn’t know where this desire came from and just brushed it off as a fleeting dream of a silly girl. I’ve always cooked and baked but nowhere near a professional level and it was only for fun, family and friends. Year after year, happy with doing hair and makeup, the dream and fantasy would creep in and I’ve shoved it out. Fast forward to this picture I painted above with me not able to pay rent most weeks and not enough clientele to pay for product. The day came when I decided to let go of the booth I had been renting and…GULP…trust the Universe and for once, be open to whatever it was that was trying to enter my life.
I cried. I was angry. I shouted to my husband, “it’s not FAIR!! I love hairstyling. But I can’t continue like this!” After crying for weeks, angry, feeling so lost and with no purpose, I came across an article about a small local bakery and the words ‘COTTAGE FOOD OPERATIONS PERMIT’. I did some research and oh my gawd, it’s involved. At first, I kept saying “I’m not a baker! I’m a hairstylist!” My husband would say that I am a baker and an amazing one. Him, pushing and supporting me as my cheerleading captain and believing and seeing in me what I couldn’t at the time, I started the process.
For the Cottage Food Operations (CFO) permit, you have to pick a business name, apply for it at the courthouse, pay, place an ad in a local paper for four consecutive weeks announcing this new business along with your name, send the SD county health department worker that you’re assigned to the newspaper announcing it, up to 10 items that you are planning on selling, the ingredients lists, the packaging, the labels, your logo, take food safety and handling course and prove you passed with a certificate…along with numerous other details. This process, all via email took about nine months. After making the final payment and that all of the items listed look good, a county health inspector comes to your home to inspect the kitchen where the baking will be done.
When I passed the inspection and handed my green piece of paper with my permit number, I thanked the lady, watched her leave and then burst out into tears. All of my work, stressing over the process, the unknown of what’s to come…all of it just released all at once. I still didn’t feel like a BAKER. But trusting the journey, I did. Being a health and fitness freak, I decided to focus on paleo and keto-friendly baked goods. I have an insane sweet tooth. I get it from my dad. Cakes. Donuts. Cookies. Pies. I don’t discriminate. Love it all. I’m an avid runner, hot yoga and bootcamp yoga is my therapy and happiness. I know what good nutrition is and what havoc sugar does to the body and health. But I couldn’t resist sugar. Not all of the time. So here I found myself armed with the tool of a baker’s permit?? And I was allowed to sell to the public?! I’m no saint but one thing was loud and clear. That I couldn’t with a clear conscience contribute to today’s health problems with SUGAR. Baking gluten-free was also important. I avoid bread, pasta and ‘bad carbs’ so why would I bake with them, I thought. Figuring out the gluten-free recipe was tricky but done. After batches of sticky, dry, inedible and hard fails, I finally had it down. Sugar-free. Wow. That was even trickier! Most sugar substitutes have an after taste. And of course, I was going the natural route so none of that blue, pink or yellow packets stuff. And I realized that most recipes don’t come out with the desired texture that baked sugar gives. Playing around with Raw Stevia, Monkfruit sweetener and some other variations of a natural sweetener, I got that part down. Wheu.
As a consumer, I knew there were a lot of gluten-free products and sugar-free products but not a lot of choices in the gluten-free AND sugar-free baked goods/desserts department. I would be one of the few, I confidently said to myself. Not stressing myself with any grandiose ideas of opening up a bakery with a ton of overhead and expensive lease, I started out as word of mouth, online bakery. Most of my orders came in by word of mouth. Someone at the yoga studio I go to heard I baked paleo and would place an order. Hair clients of mine would order for a party they’re having or because they’re strictly paleo or gluten-free. The best compliments I got were always the same. “These don’t TASTE gluten-free!” Or “Are you sure these are sugar-free??” Even vegan clients were blown away with my vegan options. Two years of this and not really knowing where it was going, my mantra was “trust the journey…” and then the question of what if THIS is the destination came to mind. Was I okay with that? Or did my ego need to be on the shelves of Whole Foods markets? I was more than okay with that. The sheer joy and pleasure my healthy decadence was bringing people was making my heart full. I am today, as we speak…trusting in the journey.
I recently made the tough decision to let my baking permit go and not renew this year. You see, the permit isn’t transferable and I had recently moved. I knew it was nontransferable when I started the process almost three years ago. My renewal would be up three months after my move. Not owning this house but renting, was it worth it to go through the nine months process for THIS kitchen? We still have the other house and have been getting it VRBO ready. We decided not to sell and to try it out as vacation rental owners. So I could’ve lied and said nothing. Brought all of my baking supplies up to the old house and made it look like I was still baking there before the inspector came and get it out of the house afterwards. But just the thought of concocting such a scheme kept me up at night. So, honesty, blah blah blah.
Just as the knocking on my soul’s door to apply for the CFO permit was loud and undeniable, after moving and deciding to be honest and let the baking go, there was that same knocking to look for a salon job. I’d have to start commission first since I don’t have the clientele for booth rent. I gladly will welcome hairstyling back into my life in ANY form and applied after seeing an ad that made my spidey senses say, “THIS IS IT”. I applied. Interviewed. Got the job. Yaay. So excited for what was to come. For the first time in a long time, everything felt right. That was the week of March 10th. With this Corona Virus, salons were the first to close. As I share my story right now, I can’t help but think of some tragic dramedy (emphasis on the DRAMA). But I don’t sit here angry, frustrated or thinking life’s not fair.
We are in the 4th week of the quarantine. I don’t know if it’ll be over soon. I do yoga at home, workout to live streaking workouts beautiful, generous souls are having every day, run to the beach and all of that helps with my sanity and to prevent cabin fever. But the thought has crossed my mind. Is this it? Is this the new normal? People say “nooo, of course it’ll end”. But no one knows. I’ve baked paleo cookies and muffins for my neighbors. And as I attach a note to them, “With most bakeries closed, thought you would enjoy these Paleo chocolate muffins”, my heart smiles as I think “if this IS it…are you okay with it?” And the answer is yes. I smile and laugh as neighbors drop off the most amazing, sweeter-than-honey tangelos from their trees and lemons with a thank you card in return. I’d gladly go back to bartering days, I say as my heart smiles. This time of being forced to slow down, to do less, go nowhere, be still, see less, keep communications open…I think this is bringing out the best in humanity.
One of my friends who is also on an amazing spiritual journey has reminded me that the dots may not connect now. But they do connect. Everything does happen for a reason. And the timing is never wrong. So what can we do other than trust in the journey, be the best humans we can be, always practicing kindness, being patient and forgiving and loving with everyone…including thy SELF. It just occurred to me that my story isn’t about a successful hairstylist or baker but a successful human experience. And if I were to ask myself if I’m okay with that??… Yes.
What else should our readers know?
Paleo, Gluten-free, Sugar-free, Healthy, Decadent.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Realizing when you TRY, you never fail.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Love_.baked
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