How to Know if You’re READY to Start a Home Bakery

Starting a Home Bakery Business has become a super attractive idea and topic over the last few years!

In this post I’m going to be brutally honest with you about the awesomeness AND the reality of starting a Home Bakery.

Here’s what going on; MANY families around the world have lost their jobs due to Covid-19…

If that’s happened to your family, I’m deeply sorry for the difficult time you’ve been going through.

Know right now that your story is not over yet! God loves you way too much to ever let anything happen to you without GREAT reason.

It might be a very difficult season for you now.

A Home Bakery Business can certainly help with the practical struggles you’re facing – like providing for your family. YES, it does work and it CAN help you and your family.

But I’m not promising that life’s going to be “perfect” a few years down the line. I’m not promising that a Home Bakery will “fix everything” for you.

This world we’re in places a LOT of emphasis on dreams and how fulfilling them will finally give you joy and contentment. Let me save you the suspense and tell you right now that no earthly thing has the power to do that.

No matter how shiny that dream is, it just won’t fulfill you. I’ve experienced this first-hand.

I believe and have seen that only Jesus Christ can fulfill you – because we were made by him and for him. If a car is made to function on diesel, no amount of petrol will EVER make it go.

Over time I’ve learned that if you’re not content WITHOUT your dreams being fulfilled, you won’t be content WITH them being fulfilled (email me if you want to chat about it).

If you expect a Home Bakery to fulfill you, it will become a HEAVY BURDEN instead of a delight. A new business struggles to grow well under such pressure.

A home bakery can absolutely be a wonderful thing! Truth be told, it’s certainly changed my life.

RELATED: How Starting a Home Bakery has Changed My Life

If you’ve been brain storming ideas of how to make an income with the baking skills you DO have, you’re totally in the right place!

And now I’m guessing you’re also here because you’re not sure if you’re truly READY to start a Home Bakery Business…

Are you wondering if you’re skilled enough? 
Prepared enough? 
What it’s going to take to build a successful home bakery? 
What are the first steps to start a baking business from home?

These are the type of questions I’m covering in this post.

 

I’m going give you all the specific checkpoints you need so you can judge for yourself if you are ready to start a home bakery business.

This blog post is here to give you more clarity – especially if you haven’t started a home bakery yet.

But even if you have started your business (that’s struggling to make profit) this post will help you tremendously! You may recognize some of these checkpoints that may have been holding you back.

Through this blog post you’ll understand how to overcome them so your business can start growing.

If we haven’t met yet; hi! I’m Aurelia Lambrechts. I’ve been a full-time home baker in Cape Town, South Africa for 6+ years.

Now it’s my mission to help flavor-obsessed home bakers to get the confidence and business skills they need so that they can confidently share their baking gifts with the world.

If you want to become a confident & successful Home Bakery Business owner, I’m here to help you make it happen!

Let’s get to it 😊

 

How NOT to Judge if You’re Ready

First, we need to go through some common misconceptions of how people judge their ready-ness to start a home bakery.

Here’s how NOT to judge your ready-ness.

1. “I need to have more baking experience and confidence in my knowledge before I am ready to start selling my baked goods to people.”

I hear this all the time and I just want you to know that this is NOT a sign that you’re not ready.

When I started out, I literally baked one batch of cupcakes as an experiment just because I felt like some cake and it tasted great, and about a week or two later I was selling them.

That was the extent of my baking experience. Here’s a photo of how amateurish my bakes looked when I first started selling them.

 

Sure, I baked a bit earlier in university and as a kid, but really just in the same way any normal girl bakes in her life. I didn’t have masses of baking experience or whatever.

Truth is, you need very limited baking experience before you can start a Home Bakery.

When I baked brownies for example in university, we had to raise money for charity. Baking treats was my go-to when I had to raise money for ANYTHING.

Sure, the brownies that I baked back then weren’t perfect, but they were still VERY delicious!

The brownie recipe I’m using now I’ve been tweaking and tweaking through the thousands of times I’ve made these brownies. But it doesn’t mean those first brownies were bad. They were still pretty darn tasty!

If your baking TASTES good then you’re good to go. You’re ready. It just has to TASTE delicious. It doesn’t have to be perfect.

Your baking doesn’t need to be the “most mind-blowing goods” you’ve ever had in your life or whatever. That’s not necessary. It just has to taste good and then you are ready.

Because baking experience, confidence and knowledge are things that you can LEARN. You can learn them on the go. You don’t need to have it “all figured out” before you’re ready to start a home bakery business.

 

2. “I need to have a spacious kitchen and fancy appliances before I can start.”

I’m going to give it to you straight. This is a total LIE. A complete and total LIE.

We see spacious kitchens and fancy appliances on social media ALL the time, right?

We see bakers with these fancy KitchenAid mixers – some even have like three of them! We see bakers with like twenty spatulas and a massive commercial oven.

The BIG mistake we then make is to assume that we’d need all that fancy kitchen gear TOO before we can start a home bakery. But it’s so NOT true.

I started my side-hustle home bakery while I was working as an architectural technologist. I had a tiny salary and a heap of student debt, so there was NO WAY I could buy fancy appliances!

Back then I was living in a student house and the oven in the kitchen was unfortunately broken.

So, I would drive to my boyfriend’s (now husband) house to make my bakes there. After everything was baked, I drove back home and finished my bakes there – slicing brownies, frosting cupcakes, packaging everything.

Here’s the honest truth; I know life often doesn’t feel fair and it feels like other home bakers have it easier than you… But where there’s a will, there’s a way. You can MAKE this work.

If you don’t have a lot of space in your kitchen, that’s fine too!

After my first year of baking on the side, we got married. Then I decided to scale my side-hustle home bakery into a full-time one. For the first year and a half of full-time baking we lived in a tiny one-bedroom apartment and the kitchen was three square meters. I kid you not. Here’s a photo of our little kitchen.

I had two little counter tops and the oven in the middle and that was it. That was my entire kitchen.

In that tiny, 3 square meter kitchen I baked full-time for a year and a half! So, I repeat; you can MAKE it work.

Whatever your kitchen setup looks like, you can make it work. And if it seriously can’t work in your kitchen then ask a friend or family if you can bake in their kitchen once a week.

You don’t need a spacious kitchen to start a home bakery.

In my tiny kitchen I even baked for a massive event called the Good Food and Wine Show. In that tiny space I baked 1000 treats in four days. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

You don’t need heaps of resources to be successful. Success isn’t reserved for people who have an “easy life” or bottomless resources. Success goes to the people who use effective business strategies, are determined and work with what they have.

That’s what it takes to be successful.

So, whatever your situation is right now, you can make it work. Don’t let your kitchen size or lack of fancy appliances hold you back or determine whether you’re ready or not.

Your resources (or lack thereof) are NOT a sign of your ready-ness at all.

 

3. “I need to create my own recipes & they need to be perfect before I’m ready.”

I already covered this a little bit in point number 1.

The very first brownies I made and sold weren’t perfect at all, but they still tasted really good! They weren’t the “ultimate chocolate brownies” that I bake now, but they were still pretty darn tasty.

Your baking does NOT have to be perfect before you’re ready to start a home bakery.

No-one is going to ask for your baking qualification or whatever. No-one cares. If it tastes good then people will buy from you. Your recipes don’t need to be perfect. Your baking just needs to taste good.

There are loads of amazing recipes online. You don’t need to develop your own recipes before you can sell your baked goods!

You can just find a delicious recipe online from Baker by Nature, Cleobuttera, Sally’s Baking Addiction, Brown-Eyed Baker or whoever else has a recipe with a high star-rating.

There are so many amazing baking blogs out there with stunning recipes. Always look at the star rating of the recipe and then make them. Make them, follow the recipe to the T and then taste it, if it tastes great then start selling them.

This is not a copyright infringement at all. If you started a blog and you copy their recipe and claim that it’s your own, that’s not okay. That would be illegal.

But, you may bake whatever recipes you find online and sell them. That’s totally okay and legal.

Of course, if you post that bake on social media it’s just good manners to tag the recipe’s creator in your caption. Please always do that.

 

4. “I’ll feel ready (not scared) when I’m ready to start a home bakery business or when it’s time for me to start one.”

This is so not the case.

You see, our brains are very interesting things. Have you watched The Croods? It is such a great example!

It’s about this family of cave people and the father has this rule in their household that anything new is BAD. He’s so set on this rule that anything new is BAD because that’s how their family has survived for years and years. NOT avoiding new things is the reason why all their neighbours have died.

This is exactly the way many home bakers approach something like starting a home bakery!

Your brain will ALWAYS make you scared of things that are NEW.

Fear is NOT a sign that you’re not supposed to start a Home Bakery.

Fear is NOT a sign that you’re not ready. It’s just a sign that you’re HUMAN, that’s all. Don’t let the feeling of nervousness and fear make you assume that you’re not ready to start a home bakery.

 

Now that we’ve discussed how NOT to judge your ready-ness, let’s go over the ACTUAL signs that you’re ready to start a home bakery.

The 3 Signs that You’re READY to Start a Home Bakery Business:

1. You’re not looking for a “get-rich-quick shortcut” but you actually LOVE baking.

During Covid-19 people’s eyes have been opened to the benefits of a home bakery business.

You get to be at home – which is mandatory during quarantine and lockdown. You get to make money from the comfort of your own home and you’re able to be there for your family.

There are so many benefits to a home bakery business.

And now during Covid-19 I’ve received so many e-mails from people saying; “my wife and I are at home and we realize we have this time, let’s start a baking business!”

That’s great and all but you need to realize that if you’re going to start a home bakery you’re going to be baking – A LOT.

If you don’t love baking, you’re going to have a very tough time having a BAKING business! A home bakery is not a get-rich-quick scheme. It’s not a shortcut to quickly make money.

You’re going to have to grow. You are going to learn how to be a business owner.

In the beginning you’ll be baking after hours as you build up a side-hustle home bakery. Are you willing to make that commitment?

And then, when you’re baking full-time, you’re going to be baking about four to five days per week. Every week. Do you love baking enough to do it five days per week?

If you do, then that’s GREAT! Then you’re ready to start a Home Bakery.

If you only want to make a heap of money quickly then a home bakery business is not right for you. But, if you want to make an income AND the idea of baking on a very regular basis excites you, then you’re ready for a home bakery.

2. You’re open to learning new things for the rest of your life.

Being open to learning new things is VITAL for the success of a home bakery business.

It’s fine if you feel like you don’t know enough. It is fine if you don’t have enough experience and knowledge right now and you don’t feel confident in your knowledge, that’s fine.

It’s only a problem if you don’t want to learn new skills or grow them.

Because learning new skills and growing them is the ONLY way you’re going to become a successful business owner.

A] You’re going to need to grow as a person.

Here’s a quote from small business expert Michael E Gerber (from his book The E-Myth Revisited): “Your small business will always be nothing more than a distinct reflection of who you are.”

Here’s what he’s saying: YOU are the center of your baking business. YOU are the person making all the decisions. And therefor your business will magnify YOUR weaknesses and strengths.

Every single business decision will be made in your mind. You are the person that makes those decisions.

So, if you’re very un-confident and insecure and doubt yourself then that’s going to come out in your baking business. It’s inevitable. It just happens.

I saw that in my own business and that’s why I had to grow so much as a person.

But once again, if you’re just OPEN to learning and growing and changing, then you are going to be totally fine. Then you’re ready to start a home bakery.

 

B] You’re also going to need to grow as a business owner.

School was a wonderful thing, I’m very grateful to have gone to school.

But you need to understand that school was created during the Industrial Revolution. It was a different time. School was intentionally designed to produce docile factory employees – someone that works for a boss.

The way you think, the way you function, the way you make decisions; ALL of it was shaped by the traditional schooling system.

Right now, you’re functioning like an employee that works for someone else. It’s not your fault. It’s not a bad thing. It’s just what school trained you for. That’s a fact.

But now that you want to become a successful business owner, you’re going to need to learn how to become an ENTREPRENEUR. That’s a totally different ball game.

The Employee mindsets, employee beliefs, employee ways of doing things (which you were taught in school) do not work when you’re trying to become an entrepreneur. Employee-thinking won’t help you when you want to become a successful business owner.

But once again, you just need to be OPEN to learning about entrepreneurship.

You just need to be open to learning new entrepreneurial skills and how to think like an entrepreneur, how to act like an entrepreneur.

Great news is that ANYONE who is open can learn how to be an entrepreneur!

It’s not something that you’re “born with” or not.

Anyone who is open can learn entrepreneurship skills. They are very simple. They are very straightforward and they can be taught. It can be learned.

You just need to be open and willing to learn; then you are ready.

 

3. You don’t have it all figured out. You’re scared but you’re ALSO excited!

I want you to imagine something for a moment. Picture yourself with a thriving home bakery. You are fully booked for this week and next week in advance.

You are baking full-time. You’re baking about four to five days per week.

Now, I want to ask you; does that thought make you feel tired and overwhelmed? OR does it make you feel nervous, but ALSO giddy and excited?

That’s how you know you’re ready to start a home bakery! If the thought is scary but it ALSO excites you.

In summary; what makes you ready is NOT the knowledge and experience you have. It’s NOT about feeling ready. It’s not about having a massive kitchen with fancy appliances.

None of those are signs that you are ready.

THE SIGNS THAT YOU’RE READY TO START A HOME BAKERY ARE:

1. You’re in love with baking,
2. You’re open to learning new skills and
3. The thought of a home bakery makes you feel nervous and scared, but ALSO very excited.

 

I’m READY! What do I do Next??

And now, if you’ve just realized you ARE ready to start a Home Bakery Business, I’d love to show you HOW to do it 😊 Yay!

Remember how I told you need to learn how to think & act like an entrepreneur – not an employee?

Well, here’s an entrepreneurship TRUTH you need to know: Home Bakery success doesn’t happen by accident or luck or talent alone. Success happens with STRATEGY.

Even if you’re one of the best bakers in your town/city, you’ll still need to grow beyond being a baker and LEARN how to become an ENTREPRENEUR.

Because a successful baking business is 30% great baking and 70% great Business Strategy. That explains why commercial bakeries are so successful. Their baking doesn’t taste as good as yours, but their business strategy is on point! Make sense?

Imagine how far you could go if you had the business skills to MATCH your delicious baking!

Here’s how to get consistent sales every week:

Learn about ENTREPRENEURSHIP and learn about how CLIENTS THINK before they buy (in other words, learn about Marketing). Invest in a proven STRATEGY to get clients & sales every week.

If you want a home bakery that gets consistent orders and a stable income; you need a proven STRATEGY to get you there.

So, come join me in my next, free Home Bakery Masterclass to learn my exact system for creating a fully-booked baking business.