October 9, 2024 • 26 mins
Today's guest is sharing how offering local classes has helped their brand expand its business. Megan Brewer from Brown Butter Bakery returns to share her uplifting journey of the success her and her hubby have had by now offering community classes.
In this episode, we discuss:
- What inspired them to start their brand as cottage bakers
- What steps did they take to incorporate local classes into their business
- How they manage to sell a single cookie for $10 with success
- How they turned a love of classes into a kid's camp to help their community
From celebrating a $1k sales day to a $4k sales day as home bakers, Megan and Kyle's commitment to their business and faith show what's possible for home bakers.
You can view their beautiful work by clicking here.
Ready to work with me to start hosting your own money-making local decorating classes? Click here
Two ways I help my students earn $2-10k monthly👇?
1.) Grow your home bakery business inside The Entrepreneur Community by clicking here
2.) Learn to sell digital products inside Digital Product Community by clicking here
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Hey, sweet friends, my name is Chef Schaumburg.
I started my baking businesswith a bottle of DeSorono and
one Bundt cake pan.
Fast forward to today, fromnews to magazines, speaking on
national stages and more.
I can truly say that baking haschanged my life.
So now, as a bakery businesscoach, I get to help others have
the same success.
I've helped hundreds of mystudents across the world in my
(00:24):
global membership program createsix-figure businesses, mainly
from home.
The Baking for Business podcastis an extension of that, from
actionable tips to valuabletools and resources that can
impact you as a business owner.
I truly believe y'all.
We would never have been givena gift if we couldn't profit and
prosper from it.
So come on, darling.
What are you waiting for?
(00:45):
Hey?
What's going on, you guys?
And welcome back to the bakingfor business podcast.
I'm so excited to have you heretoday.
Today we have a special guest inthe house.
We have Megan Brewer of BrownButter Bakery, located in Texas,
and you might be reallyfamiliar with their story
(01:06):
because they were on podcastepisode number 41, which was
amazing because it highlightedhow they generated over $1,000 a
day in sales as home bakersselling cookies.
Well, since then, they'vescaled, they've added classes to
their brand and that has reallyjust accelerated their business
.
And so I thought it would beamazing to hear tips and tools
(01:29):
directly from one half of BrownButter Bakery.
Today we have Megan Brewer, soshe is the back end of Brown
Butter Bakery, along with Kyle,who is amazing, is amazing, and
together this duo runs a reallytight-knit, family-owned
business, which is all aboutfamily, putting community first
(01:49):
and spreading joy in their localbusiness.
So, megan, welcome back to theBaking for Business podcast.
How are you doing today?
Speaker 2 (01:56):
I'm doing so well.
Thank you so much for having mehere today.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
Absolutely, and so, for those who may not have
listened to the previous episode, can you just give us a little
bit of how is Brown ButterBakery formed and what are some
of the things that you guysoffer?
Speaker 2 (02:10):
So we started two years ago about to the day
because it was October of 2022.
We had recently moved into anew home.
We had moved our family into anew area because our daughter
was starting kindergarten.
We wanted her in a betterschool system and we just found
ourselves in need of more income.
What we had wasn't cutting itwith our full-time jobs, and so
(02:32):
we try to get creative and thinkwhat skills do we have that we
could utilize?
And Kyle has always been awonderful baker and I think he
would agree that I have a knackfor bossing people around so I
got that job and he got to getinto the kitchen and we just use
that to really supplement ourincome and to make life a little
(02:54):
bit easier.
Our kids started gettinginvolved in activities and so
that helps pay for those thingstoo.
Our niche products are cookies.
We love to make cookies, bakecookies.
We don't do much with cake.
We do make cake sickles, butthat's about it.
So we make big giant gourmetcookies, cookie cakes, stacked
cookie cakes If it's a cookiebut not royal icing, we make it.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
Amazing and so many people are into the gourmet
cookies now and you guys doamazing with your gourmet
cookies now and you guys doamazing with your gourmet
cookies, and so I'm pretty surewhen you first started, you were
all about cookies, like sellingcookies, selling them.
You sell singles, which havebeen amazing for like $10 each.
Speaker 2 (03:35):
Yes, we actually just had some picked up right before
this, so so, yes, we do a giftbox of a single cookie with
buttercream on top, and those gofor $10 each.
Speaker 1 (03:44):
Oh my gosh.
That in itself I love, and wecan go down a rabbit hole
because so many bakers assumethat a cookie only has to be two
or $3.
So you know they're alwaysasking people for pricing help
in groups and I'm like no,depending on your brand and how
you set yourself up, you canearn more from cookies.
So $10 from one gourmet cookiewith buttercream in a box.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Yes, ma'am, yes, it is possible.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
It is right, amen, that's so awesome.
And so when you guys started,you sell the single cookies, you
sell cookies by the dozen, butyou were not doing classes.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
No, we started out just driving around our
neighborhood handing cookies out.
We got on our neighborhoodFacebook and said, hey, we've
got cookies.
Who wants them?
And a lot of people likecookies.
So we were hand deliveringevery single thing for free and
losing all of the money that wepossibly could until we learned
how to do better and eventually,yes, we have added classes to
(04:40):
our repertoire.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
Absolutely, and so fast forward.
I know you joined theentrepreneur community.
You guys are both members and,like you said, you've learned
how to do better now.
You definitely charge for yourdelivery and I love the fact
that you guys jump on theopportunity to host classes.
So can you tell me about that?
(05:02):
When you're hearing, you know,I always say you can earn more
in one night than you can in oneweek Were you thinking, yeah,
right, or maybe we should go forit?
Or what made you decide to tryour classes?
Speaker 2 (05:14):
So being part of the entrepreneur community, we hear
you talk about community classesand getting your community
involved in teaching, and I am100%.
Whatever cook or whatever chefsays, we're going to do it.
And sometimes it takes me alittle bit to talk Kyle into it,
but he's married to me and hasto live with me, so he usually
does what I asked him to do ornot.
(05:37):
No, but really it was a youtalking in our entrepreneur
group, seeing the testimonialsfrom other people who had done
it.
And and another thing is iswhat really got Kyle on board
was we wanted to involve kids insome way, because his passion
started as a child and you know,just culturally you don't see
men in the kitchen super often.
(05:58):
You know, when we first started, we got a lot of comments about
Kyle being in the kitchen andand so we kind of wanted to help
change that stigma and justembrace anybody that wanted to
learn cooking.
And for me, I wasn't in thekitchen a lot as a kid and so
I've learned a lot through him.
So what really got us on boardwas listening to stories of
people in our entrepreneurcommunity, your foundation of
(06:20):
exactly how to do it and whatwe're going to do and the way
it's going to be successful andjust putting them together and
trying out a class.
And it really worked out for us.
And once we saw it the firsttime, we were like we could
rinse, recycle and repeat.
You know, just do this over andover again in different ways
and make it fun.
And so we have.
We've done several differentclasses and even camps since
(06:42):
then and it's been a trueblessing on our business and our
family.
Speaker 1 (06:47):
Oh, that is so awesome to hear.
So walk me through your firstclass.
Do you remember, you guys?
Very first class?
What was that that you offered?
Speaker 2 (06:55):
We had to get creative, because with just
standard gourmet cookies, youknow we're not decorating
anything.
So what are we going to teachpeople?
Because not everywhere hascommercial ovens for us to be
able to go in and bake, and sowe used other kitchen skills
that we have and we actually dida class.
In our community we have awonderful HOA center and we've
(07:16):
repeated this at othercommunities as well chocolate,
espresso mousse with chantillycream and fresh berries, and it
was for us, something prettysimple, but a lot of people
don't know how to make it.
So, you know, we bought burnersto take on the tables and we
have.
They're all confection, sothere's no fire, but you know
we've got confection burners andpots and pans and all this
(07:37):
stuff.
And so, even though it wasn'twhat our specialty is, it was
still a skill that we had thatwe could share with other people
, and it was.
It was just an absolute blast.
We had so much fun teachingthat class.
Speaker 1 (07:52):
And that's what I love, and that's that's one of
the things I go over.
The C is for creative, becausethere's so many different ways
to have classes that are notnecessarily what it is that you
do, but you can still have funwithin it.
You can think outside the boxand you're right.
To some, as bakers, it may seemso simple, but what people
(08:14):
don't understand is that whenyou're having community classes
and you're teaching people inyour neighborhood, people who
normally don't step in thekitchen this isn't their
profession.
Maybe they're senior citizensor maybe they're young it
doesn't come easy to them.
So making a mousse from scratchand then chantilly, which is so
delicious and so big in theSouth, that in itself sounds
(08:35):
like fun.
So that's really, reallyawesome.
Speaker 2 (08:38):
Yeah, it was a great time and just, we've really
learned through our classesexactly what you said.
Just, we've really learnedthrough our classes exactly what
you said.
What may be normal and and runin the middle for us is not.
That's not the case foreverybody.
There are many families who eatout every single day and have
never stepped foot in theirkitchen, and so getting together
because we had several familiesthat came and did that class
(08:59):
together it was a fun night forthem to get together and do
something new and add somethingto what they do at home, and
many of those families have toldus since then that they started
cooking at home with their kidsor they started finding things
to do in the kitchen with theirkids, and it's an activity that
they now do regularly together.
That has brought them closertogether and I think for me
that's the most rewarding partis one little thing a two-hour
(09:21):
night that we spent together hasturned into something that they
do regularly and has broughtthem closer together.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
Absolutely.
That's so amazing and such awonderful testimony to your
brand mission you guys you andKyle with Brown Butter Bakery of
just really being active in thecommunity and helping and
serving others.
You mentioned earlier that youwent through your HOA, which I
think is amazing, because somany people say, okay, well, if
I have a home-based business andI don't have space and I don't
(09:50):
want people to come to my home,as you shouldn't, how do I find
people?
And so I'm always big, I'm likethere's tons of people out
there.
But, besides the HOA, can youmaybe share maybe one other
person that you partner with tohave your classes with?
Speaker 2 (10:04):
locally.
You may be sure, maybe oneother person that you partner
with to have your classes withlocally.
So we have a local coffee shopthat we are in the talks of
doing a class with.
She actually owns her owncoffee shop and we're talking
about doing something with that.
We can incorporate a coffeeflight with some sort of cooking
or decorating class in her shop.
So there's total, there'stotally everything, a ton of
(10:24):
venues that we can use, and sowe're definitely not limiting
ourselves on where we can go.
If you can imagine it andyou're willing to put the work
in to make it come together, youcan make it come together.
So if you're just willing to dothe legwork and you're willing
to look into it and make sureyou're not you're following the
rules, you can do it.
There's places out there.
You just got to be willing togo.
(10:44):
Look for them.
Speaker 1 (10:46):
Absolutely, and so many businesses they welcome,
you know, activities andpartnerships with other small
businesses because it allows usto come together.
We both get to spread brandvisibility, especially when we
have the same target audience.
So it's a win-win for bothpeople, on both sides.
And so you actually ended uptaking one of your classes and
(11:08):
you and Kyle turned it into awhole camp.
Yes, we did Tell us about now,which is another wonderful way
that I tell people that you canspend your classes.
So tell us about yourchildren's camp and how does
that go?
Speaker 2 (11:21):
So we had this really crazy idea that we would spend
an entire week in a kitchen withlittle kids.
It was one of the most funweeks we've ever had.
We were very nervous, forobvious reasons how are we going
to wrangle 20 kids for a wholeweek in a kitchen safely?
But we had so much fun with it.
(11:42):
So what we really wanted to dowas bring in a class that spoke
to a host of children, and wedid limit the age group so that
way we could really focus on acertain set of skills and make
sure that we knew who ouraudience was, and it fit the
bill.
So we worked with kids thatwere between seven and 12 and
they came in for a week.
Our class was nine to three, soit was literally an entire day,
(12:05):
and we started with the verybasics of what are your kitchen
tools, how do you have respectin the kitchen, how do you
practice safety, and we learnedhow to.
We taught them how to measuredry ingredients, wet ingredients
, how to use the scales in thekitchen, how to level everything
(12:27):
that you would need to know.
From the very basics and by theend of the week, we just built
on those skills throughout theweek and then by the end of the
week they were making their owndesserts and gift wrapping them
to take to family members toshare what they had learned in
class.
And it was so much fun.
Every day we made sure they hada treat that they could take
home so that the parents couldsee.
And it was amazing seeing thekids as soon as their parents
(12:50):
would get there.
They would light up and they'relike look what I made today.
And it was so much fun and itwas because I studied education.
I just didn't finish my degree,so I've got a little bit of a
background in it and I likebuilding lesson plans and things
like that to try to do, youknow, do it in separate or
different ways so that, nomatter how you learn you're,
you're absorbing it.
(13:12):
So, yeah, we would play gamesthat had to do with what we
learned that day and we even hadthem.
We gave all the kids postersone day and had them draw what
their dream bakery would looklike, what would you name it?
What would you sell?
So we did a whole bunch ofactivities with them that just
really got a lot of them excitedabout what they were doing and
teaching them that you know ifyou love to give, it doesn't
(13:33):
always have to be something yougo by.
You can make something forpeople, and you guys have
learned all these skills in thisclass and you can share those
with others, and by makingsomething with your hands you
can bring somebody a lot of joy,and so it was.
It was a full week of crazymess and loud little ones
running around in a very echoeybuilding, but it was so much fun
(13:54):
and we're actually signed up todo two more this coming summer,
so we're super excited forthose.
Speaker 1 (14:02):
Wow, you go girl.
That is totally amazing.
So I love the fact that you'vehad classes with adults and
they've gone successful.
But you took your passionbecause you are a mom of little
ones yourself and then turn thatinto working with children and
for a whole week.
I know those were a lot ofparents that you guys gave a
(14:23):
break from, yes, yes.
So that is really awesome.
So, aside from the kids, whatwas the most unique class that
you guys have done to date?
Speaker 2 (14:37):
Well, I think probably the most unique was the
one that we did most recently.
We did a pancake flight class.
So, you know, we just haverandom ideas every now and then
and we're like're like man,wouldn't that be fun, let's do
it and go a little bit crazy.
Walmart had, um, what are theycalled?
Their skillets, their um flattops on sale, like the little
(15:00):
tabletop ones.
And uh, we were like, yeah, wecould buy a bunch of those and
do a pancake class.
So we bought a bunch of themand did a pancake class.
And I know when we were postingabout it there, there was a lot
of skepticism.
I, you know, and I actuallyresponded with a video and said
you know, there's misconceptionabout what we're doing and you
know, this class is for certainpeople and if it's not for you,
(15:21):
that's, that's great, but ifthis is for you, we would love
to have you.
And what we did was we madericotta pancakes and we made
four different toppings to puton them.
We made a blueberry compote, wemade a lemon curd, we made what
we call the chunky monkey.
It's got brulee bananas andmascarpone whipped cheese, and
then there was a strawberry one.
I can't remember what the otherone was, but we did four
(15:43):
different toppings for thepancakes and so everybody worked
in groups and the fun thing wasis you didn't know who all
signed up, so you made them putwith strangers and so seeing
everybody work together and allof a sudden they're like we're
going to have the best ones inthe class and they were able to
bring in their own mimosas,which helped with the calming of
the nerves, with meeting newpeople.
(16:04):
But it was so much fun, it wasan absolute blast.
We had a full class that dayand we made so many pancakes and
everyone was super excited totake their recipes home.
And it was just a wild idea wehad because we love to do brunch
here at home.
My kids personal favorite isdad's lemon ricotta pancakes
(16:24):
with a lemon compote and blueSorry, a lemon curd and a
blueberry compote on top, and sowe were like why don't we teach
other people to make it?
And it turned out really well.
They had so much fun.
We've gotten requests to dothat one again.
Speaker 1 (16:36):
Oh my gosh, I can only imagine a pancake flight.
Class is definitely it'sthinking out the box.
But I love the fact that shesaid people came together,
because that's what I'm alwaystelling my students.
I'm like you're just the host.
(16:57):
The class is really aboutpeople in the community getting
to know one another and you justguiding them along their
journey, and so I love that.
And so you recently actuallycelebrated a big goal with all
that in terms of income, but youactually closed out on a
four,000 day.
That is so amazing.
How did that feel?
Speaker 2 (17:12):
It felt really great and I also felt like I was
really tired.
It was.
You know, there's these thingsthat happen and you're like, oh,
this is amazing.
And then you're like, oh, howare we going to do it?
And you know it's funny when wefirst started, a half dozen box
of cookies felt overwhelming.
We were like, how are we goingto make three dozen cookies
today?
And you know, you grow and nowwe've got huge commercial size
(17:36):
double convection ovens in ourhouse and we have a separate
oven for our home food.
So you know, you learn and yougrow and you invest.
And now when someone's like, oh, can we have 500 cookies next
weekend?
We're like, sure, that's noproblem.
So that 4K day felt like it wasa little bit of a shock.
And then we're like, wait asecond, like that's, that's not
(17:56):
too much, like we can handlethat, that's going to be pretty
easy.
So it was.
It was really like a fullcircle moment where it just made
me think of how far we've comeand appreciative of everything
that God has blessed us with,everything that we have come our
way.
It's all the glory goes to him.
We couldn't do it without himand the blessings that he has
bestowed upon us and we couldn'tdo it without your guidance.
(18:18):
You've helped us through everystep of the way.
So it's just been.
You know, it was just.
It was nice to just kind of sitand reflect and think, man, our
hard work has brought us tothis point and it was just a
true blessing Absolutely,absolutely.
Speaker 1 (18:31):
And I love that, because too often we hear so
many bakers, oh, this economy oroh, I can't do it, or things
are slow for me, or that'llnever happen, or like, as you
know, we were talking beforebecause I teach you guys
multiple ways to make money andone of those is digital products
.
But I do always like to tell mystudents that is not the only
way.
So when I see people like youyou and Kyle bakery business
(18:56):
owners who have that 4K day fromcookies because another thing,
cookies in classes Some peoplewould also assume that you
couldn't do that unless you didwedding cakes or fondant or like
you have to do the big skillsto make the big bucks.
You come along and show thatit's possible.
So all is possible to anyonewho believes, and so that's one
of the things I love about youYou're always in the group and
(19:19):
always being so motivated, andso what advice would you have to
anyone who wants to get startedwith classes or wants to add
classes into their business?
Speaker 2 (19:30):
My very first piece of advice would be join the
entrepreneur community and getthe layout of it, because it
helped 110%.
We said she's got a great planhere.
How can we use it in a way thatmakes sense for us?
And so the structure justworked perfectly.
And my other piece of advicewould just be don't be scared.
You don't know what's going tohappen if you don't try, and you
(19:52):
miss 100% of the shots that youdon't take, and so if you're
not willing to try, you're notgoing to get anywhere and you're
going to make mistakes.
Things are going to happen andyou're going to learn and grow
from it every time.
But that's the point is, whenyou do mess up, you learn and
you're better the next timebecause of it and you just you
just have to start somewhere andit's.
It's worth it.
Speaker 1 (20:11):
Absolutely, you're right.
It is so totally worth it.
And so what are some of thefuture plans for Brown Butter
Bakery that you guys are workingon?
Speaker 2 (20:19):
So, like I mentioned, we're already booked to do
several more classes,particularly camps.
We're going to do one foryounger kids and then we're
going to do a high school ageclass, which I hope that goes
well, and then we have also beenplanning some digital classes,
so we're excited to roll thoseout, hopefully soon.
Speaker 1 (20:41):
That's what I love One step at a time, one thing at
a time, and so I'm so happyabout that.
Before I let you go, I do wantto say thank you so much for
coming on and for sharing withme, and we're going to play a
game of lightning round theremix, since this is your second
visit.
Are you ready?
Yes, ma'am, who is yourfavorite 90s artist?
(21:03):
Oh, nsync.
Speaker 2 (21:05):
I'm a youngin, I love NSYNC.
Chef, irene'm young.
I'm a young and I love NSYNC.
Speaker 1 (21:11):
Chef Irene was just on and she said the Backstreet
Boys.
So yeah, I love them all.
What is your favorite cartoon?
Speaker 2 (21:19):
Oh, my favorite cartoon.
I don't think I've thoughtabout that in a minute.
Oh man, I mean, I lovedwatching, like Rocket Power,
when I was a kid.
Speaker 1 (21:41):
I like that.
I like that and we'll leave itthere from the bottom of my
heart.
Megan, thank you so much forcoming on and just for updating
us with you and Kyle's successand continue.
Blessings to both you and Kyleas you continue to grow your
business in your local communitywith classes and with all the
other things that your heartdesires.
Speaker 2 (22:02):
Thank you so much for having me and allowing me to
speak.
Thank you for all the guidancethat you give us.
It has helped so much.
Speaker 1 (22:10):
Oh, you're more than welcome, darling.
Special thanks again to Meganfor coming on and sharing her
story and where they are now.
I love to see my studentselevate and I love to see my
students scale.
You know two things, twoquestions that I get asked a lot
.
One of the first is always youknow, should I do something?
(22:34):
Whenever people ask me they'llsay, well, should I do this or
should I do that?
Which one's better?
And I tell people there isn't abetter good, worse, anything
like that.
It's just that what may workfor one person may not work for
you, but you won't know if it'llwork for you until you go for
it and until you try it.
Which brings me to the secondthing.
(22:54):
People will ask me a lot Is itworth it?
And my response to that and mystudents always know I always
combat that and say I don't know.
Are you worth it?
Like, because anytime someonetells me that they're trying
something new and then they askis it worth it?
That depends.
Are you worth it?
Is your family worth it?
Is your future worth it?
(23:14):
Like, I think too often we findexcuses and reasons to not go
for things and we want to becomforted in life Like we just
want to know, okay, well, I'llgo for this.
I want to know that it's goingto be okay.
I want to know that I'm goingto get an A plus.
I want to know that, you know,like a microwave result, like
the sales will just tripleovernight.
And that's not business, that'snot even life.
(23:37):
Nothing is promised.
And so what I love about Meganand Kyle and what she said was
just that we just decided to gofor it.
Why not?
Just why not?
And every single time, they addsomething, they try something
new, they take a lesson, theylearn from it and then they get
better.
And so it's just amazing to seehow, again on episode 41, they
(23:59):
were celebrating a 1K day.
Amazing to see how, again onepisode 41, they were
celebrating a 1K day.
Now, with cookies, with classes, they're celebrating a 4K day.
And to be in business withintwo years and to have that level
of success, that is reallyamazing.
And so today I'm asking you areyou worth it?
If there's something in yourbusiness that needs to be
changed, or you want to take adifferent route, or maybe you've
(24:20):
been considering classes, youwant, want to teach local
classes via kids classes, adultsclasses, senior citizens.
What I love about classes isthat they're not quite like
digital products, although theyare somewhat similar, but you
know you're not really givingaway your prized recipes unless
you decide to.
This is more of a leisure thing.
(24:40):
You're literally walking peoplein your community through a fun
activity, so you don't have toworry about your competitor or
anyone coming.
This should be something fun,simple, 90 minutes that a person
gets to interact with you.
They get to see you and hearmore about your brand.
It doesn't matter if you'rebubbly, it doesn't matter if
you're introverted, becauseyou're going to always find your
people.
But it's just up to you to justoffer that brand experience so
(25:04):
that people can come into yourworld and get to know you.
And, like I tell people all thetime, you can literally earn
more money in one night justhosting one class than you can
baking all week long.
Because the amazing part isthat it doesn't matter if you're
a cookier, be it roll icing orbuttercream, or if you're a
caker, a cupcaker even mychocolatier and sweets people we
(25:24):
have people in my community whodo dipping classes.
The most amazing part is thatyou're only doing half the work.
You're providing the item andsomeone else is doing the rest,
and it really doesn't get anysweeter than that in our
industry as we get older,especially to all my ladies.
Being on the feet all the timeis not fun, standing over a hot
kitchen all the time is not fun,and so if you can find another
(25:48):
way to scale and to grow andthat allows you to do so and
still have fun, I think that'swhat it's all about.
I am so grateful to Kyle andMegan again, kyle was in the
background baking a move when wewere recording for updating us,
sharing their story but, morethan anything, sharing their
faith.
Those are some positive,positive kids, always sweet,
(26:11):
always respectful, alwayshelpful in our group whenever
she can, and I thank God and Ipray for more people, more
students, like that in mycommunity, and so thank them for
sharing their story.
I pray that it inspired you.
If you're looking to getstarted with classes, simply
check the show notes.
I will have the links and Iwould love to show you the same
(26:32):
way I teach my students how youcan earn an extra one, two,
three, four, whatever it is thatyou want to earn teaching local
classes, and when you're readyfor the next step, I'll be here
for that too.
Thanks so much for tuning in.
Take care and bye for now.
Hey, sweet friends, my name is Chef Schaumburg.
I started my baking businesswith a bottle of DeSorono and
one Bundt cake pan.
Fast forward to today, fromnews to magazines, speaking on
national stages and more.
I can truly say that baking haschanged my life.
So now, as a bakery businesscoach, I get to help others have
the same success.
I've helped hundreds of mystudents across the world in my
(00:24):
global membership program createsix-figure businesses, mainly
from home.
The Baking for Business podcastis an extension of that, from
actionable tips to valuabletools and resources that can
impact you as a business owner.
I truly believe y'all.
We would never have been givena gift if we couldn't profit and
prosper from it.
So come on, darling.
What are you waiting for?
(00:45):
Hey?
What's going on, you guys?
And welcome back to the bakingfor business podcast.
I'm so excited to have you heretoday.
Today we have a special guest inthe house.
We have Megan Brewer of BrownButter Bakery, located in Texas,
and you might be reallyfamiliar with their story
(01:06):
because they were on podcastepisode number 41, which was
amazing because it highlightedhow they generated over $1,000 a
day in sales as home bakersselling cookies.
Well, since then, they'vescaled, they've added classes to
their brand and that has reallyjust accelerated their business
.
And so I thought it would beamazing to hear tips and tools
(01:29):
directly from one half of BrownButter Bakery.
Today we have Megan Brewer, soshe is the back end of Brown
Butter Bakery, along with Kyle,who is amazing, is amazing, and
together this duo runs a reallytight-knit, family-owned
business, which is all aboutfamily, putting community first
(01:49):
and spreading joy in their localbusiness.
So, megan, welcome back to theBaking for Business podcast.
How are you doing today?
Speaker 2 (01:56):
I'm doing so well.
Thank you so much for having mehere today.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
Absolutely, and so, for those who may not have
listened to the previous episode, can you just give us a little
bit of how is Brown ButterBakery formed and what are some
of the things that you guysoffer?
Speaker 2 (02:10):
So we started two years ago about to the day
because it was October of 2022.
We had recently moved into anew home.
We had moved our family into anew area because our daughter
was starting kindergarten.
We wanted her in a betterschool system and we just found
ourselves in need of more income.
What we had wasn't cutting itwith our full-time jobs, and so
(02:32):
we try to get creative and thinkwhat skills do we have that we
could utilize?
And Kyle has always been awonderful baker and I think he
would agree that I have a knackfor bossing people around so I
got that job and he got to getinto the kitchen and we just use
that to really supplement ourincome and to make life a little
(02:54):
bit easier.
Our kids started gettinginvolved in activities and so
that helps pay for those thingstoo.
Our niche products are cookies.
We love to make cookies, bakecookies.
We don't do much with cake.
We do make cake sickles, butthat's about it.
So we make big giant gourmetcookies, cookie cakes, stacked
cookie cakes If it's a cookiebut not royal icing, we make it.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
Amazing and so many people are into the gourmet
cookies now and you guys doamazing with your gourmet
cookies now and you guys doamazing with your gourmet
cookies, and so I'm pretty surewhen you first started, you were
all about cookies, like sellingcookies, selling them.
You sell singles, which havebeen amazing for like $10 each.
Speaker 2 (03:35):
Yes, we actually just had some picked up right before
this, so so, yes, we do a giftbox of a single cookie with
buttercream on top, and those gofor $10 each.
Speaker 1 (03:44):
Oh my gosh.
That in itself I love, and wecan go down a rabbit hole
because so many bakers assumethat a cookie only has to be two
or $3.
So you know they're alwaysasking people for pricing help
in groups and I'm like no,depending on your brand and how
you set yourself up, you canearn more from cookies.
So $10 from one gourmet cookiewith buttercream in a box.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Yes, ma'am, yes, it is possible.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
It is right, amen, that's so awesome.
And so when you guys started,you sell the single cookies, you
sell cookies by the dozen, butyou were not doing classes.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
No, we started out just driving around our
neighborhood handing cookies out.
We got on our neighborhoodFacebook and said, hey, we've
got cookies.
Who wants them?
And a lot of people likecookies.
So we were hand deliveringevery single thing for free and
losing all of the money that wepossibly could until we learned
how to do better and eventually,yes, we have added classes to
(04:40):
our repertoire.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
Absolutely, and so fast forward.
I know you joined theentrepreneur community.
You guys are both members and,like you said, you've learned
how to do better now.
You definitely charge for yourdelivery and I love the fact
that you guys jump on theopportunity to host classes.
So can you tell me about that?
(05:02):
When you're hearing, you know,I always say you can earn more
in one night than you can in oneweek Were you thinking, yeah,
right, or maybe we should go forit?
Or what made you decide to tryour classes?
Speaker 2 (05:14):
So being part of the entrepreneur community, we hear
you talk about community classesand getting your community
involved in teaching, and I am100%.
Whatever cook or whatever chefsays, we're going to do it.
And sometimes it takes me alittle bit to talk Kyle into it,
but he's married to me and hasto live with me, so he usually
does what I asked him to do ornot.
(05:37):
No, but really it was a youtalking in our entrepreneur
group, seeing the testimonialsfrom other people who had done
it.
And and another thing is iswhat really got Kyle on board
was we wanted to involve kids insome way, because his passion
started as a child and you know,just culturally you don't see
men in the kitchen super often.
(05:58):
You know, when we first started, we got a lot of comments about
Kyle being in the kitchen andand so we kind of wanted to help
change that stigma and justembrace anybody that wanted to
learn cooking.
And for me, I wasn't in thekitchen a lot as a kid and so
I've learned a lot through him.
So what really got us on boardwas listening to stories of
people in our entrepreneurcommunity, your foundation of
(06:20):
exactly how to do it and whatwe're going to do and the way
it's going to be successful andjust putting them together and
trying out a class.
And it really worked out for us.
And once we saw it the firsttime, we were like we could
rinse, recycle and repeat.
You know, just do this over andover again in different ways
and make it fun.
And so we have.
We've done several differentclasses and even camps since
(06:42):
then and it's been a trueblessing on our business and our
family.
Speaker 1 (06:47):
Oh, that is so awesome to hear.
So walk me through your firstclass.
Do you remember, you guys?
Very first class?
What was that that you offered?
Speaker 2 (06:55):
We had to get creative, because with just
standard gourmet cookies, youknow we're not decorating
anything.
So what are we going to teachpeople?
Because not everywhere hascommercial ovens for us to be
able to go in and bake, and sowe used other kitchen skills
that we have and we actually dida class.
In our community we have awonderful HOA center and we've
(07:16):
repeated this at othercommunities as well chocolate,
espresso mousse with chantillycream and fresh berries, and it
was for us, something prettysimple, but a lot of people
don't know how to make it.
So, you know, we bought burnersto take on the tables and we
have.
They're all confection, sothere's no fire, but you know
we've got confection burners andpots and pans and all this
(07:37):
stuff.
And so, even though it wasn'twhat our specialty is, it was
still a skill that we had thatwe could share with other people
, and it was.
It was just an absolute blast.
We had so much fun teachingthat class.
Speaker 1 (07:52):
And that's what I love, and that's that's one of
the things I go over.
The C is for creative, becausethere's so many different ways
to have classes that are notnecessarily what it is that you
do, but you can still have funwithin it.
You can think outside the boxand you're right.
To some, as bakers, it may seemso simple, but what people
(08:14):
don't understand is that whenyou're having community classes
and you're teaching people inyour neighborhood, people who
normally don't step in thekitchen this isn't their
profession.
Maybe they're senior citizensor maybe they're young it
doesn't come easy to them.
So making a mousse from scratchand then chantilly, which is so
delicious and so big in theSouth, that in itself sounds
(08:35):
like fun.
So that's really, reallyawesome.
Speaker 2 (08:38):
Yeah, it was a great time and just, we've really
learned through our classesexactly what you said.
Just, we've really learnedthrough our classes exactly what
you said.
What may be normal and and runin the middle for us is not.
That's not the case foreverybody.
There are many families who eatout every single day and have
never stepped foot in theirkitchen, and so getting together
because we had several familiesthat came and did that class
(08:59):
together it was a fun night forthem to get together and do
something new and add somethingto what they do at home, and
many of those families have toldus since then that they started
cooking at home with their kidsor they started finding things
to do in the kitchen with theirkids, and it's an activity that
they now do regularly together.
That has brought them closertogether and I think for me
that's the most rewarding partis one little thing a two-hour
(09:21):
night that we spent together hasturned into something that they
do regularly and has broughtthem closer together.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
Absolutely.
That's so amazing and such awonderful testimony to your
brand mission you guys you andKyle with Brown Butter Bakery of
just really being active in thecommunity and helping and
serving others.
You mentioned earlier that youwent through your HOA, which I
think is amazing, because somany people say, okay, well, if
I have a home-based business andI don't have space and I don't
(09:50):
want people to come to my home,as you shouldn't, how do I find
people?
And so I'm always big, I'm likethere's tons of people out
there.
But, besides the HOA, can youmaybe share maybe one other
person that you partner with tohave your classes with?
Speaker 2 (10:04):
locally.
You may be sure, maybe oneother person that you partner
with to have your classes withlocally.
So we have a local coffee shopthat we are in the talks of
doing a class with.
She actually owns her owncoffee shop and we're talking
about doing something with that.
We can incorporate a coffeeflight with some sort of cooking
or decorating class in her shop.
So there's total, there'stotally everything, a ton of
(10:24):
venues that we can use, and sowe're definitely not limiting
ourselves on where we can go.
If you can imagine it andyou're willing to put the work
in to make it come together, youcan make it come together.
So if you're just willing to dothe legwork and you're willing
to look into it and make sureyou're not you're following the
rules, you can do it.
There's places out there.
You just got to be willing togo.
(10:44):
Look for them.
Speaker 1 (10:46):
Absolutely, and so many businesses they welcome,
you know, activities andpartnerships with other small
businesses because it allows usto come together.
We both get to spread brandvisibility, especially when we
have the same target audience.
So it's a win-win for bothpeople, on both sides.
And so you actually ended uptaking one of your classes and
(11:08):
you and Kyle turned it into awhole camp.
Yes, we did Tell us about now,which is another wonderful way
that I tell people that you canspend your classes.
So tell us about yourchildren's camp and how does
that go?
Speaker 2 (11:21):
So we had this really crazy idea that we would spend
an entire week in a kitchen withlittle kids.
It was one of the most funweeks we've ever had.
We were very nervous, forobvious reasons how are we going
to wrangle 20 kids for a wholeweek in a kitchen safely?
But we had so much fun with it.
(11:42):
So what we really wanted to dowas bring in a class that spoke
to a host of children, and wedid limit the age group so that
way we could really focus on acertain set of skills and make
sure that we knew who ouraudience was, and it fit the
bill.
So we worked with kids thatwere between seven and 12 and
they came in for a week.
Our class was nine to three, soit was literally an entire day,
(12:05):
and we started with the verybasics of what are your kitchen
tools, how do you have respectin the kitchen, how do you
practice safety, and we learnedhow to.
We taught them how to measuredry ingredients, wet ingredients
, how to use the scales in thekitchen, how to level everything
(12:27):
that you would need to know.
From the very basics and by theend of the week, we just built
on those skills throughout theweek and then by the end of the
week they were making their owndesserts and gift wrapping them
to take to family members toshare what they had learned in
class.
And it was so much fun.
Every day we made sure they hada treat that they could take
home so that the parents couldsee.
And it was amazing seeing thekids as soon as their parents
(12:50):
would get there.
They would light up and they'relike look what I made today.
And it was so much fun and itwas because I studied education.
I just didn't finish my degree,so I've got a little bit of a
background in it and I likebuilding lesson plans and things
like that to try to do, youknow, do it in separate or
different ways so that, nomatter how you learn you're,
you're absorbing it.
(13:12):
So, yeah, we would play gamesthat had to do with what we
learned that day and we even hadthem.
We gave all the kids postersone day and had them draw what
their dream bakery would looklike, what would you name it?
What would you sell?
So we did a whole bunch ofactivities with them that just
really got a lot of them excitedabout what they were doing and
teaching them that you know ifyou love to give, it doesn't
(13:33):
always have to be something yougo by.
You can make something forpeople, and you guys have
learned all these skills in thisclass and you can share those
with others, and by makingsomething with your hands you
can bring somebody a lot of joy,and so it was.
It was a full week of crazymess and loud little ones
running around in a very echoeybuilding, but it was so much fun
(13:54):
and we're actually signed up todo two more this coming summer,
so we're super excited forthose.
Speaker 1 (14:02):
Wow, you go girl.
That is totally amazing.
So I love the fact that you'vehad classes with adults and
they've gone successful.
But you took your passionbecause you are a mom of little
ones yourself and then turn thatinto working with children and
for a whole week.
I know those were a lot ofparents that you guys gave a
(14:23):
break from, yes, yes.
So that is really awesome.
So, aside from the kids, whatwas the most unique class that
you guys have done to date?
Speaker 2 (14:37):
Well, I think probably the most unique was the
one that we did most recently.
We did a pancake flight class.
So, you know, we just haverandom ideas every now and then
and we're like're like man,wouldn't that be fun, let's do
it and go a little bit crazy.
Walmart had, um, what are theycalled?
Their skillets, their um flattops on sale, like the little
(15:00):
tabletop ones.
And uh, we were like, yeah, wecould buy a bunch of those and
do a pancake class.
So we bought a bunch of themand did a pancake class.
And I know when we were postingabout it there, there was a lot
of skepticism.
I, you know, and I actuallyresponded with a video and said
you know, there's misconceptionabout what we're doing and you
know, this class is for certainpeople and if it's not for you,
(15:21):
that's, that's great, but ifthis is for you, we would love
to have you.
And what we did was we madericotta pancakes and we made
four different toppings to puton them.
We made a blueberry compote, wemade a lemon curd, we made what
we call the chunky monkey.
It's got brulee bananas andmascarpone whipped cheese, and
then there was a strawberry one.
I can't remember what the otherone was, but we did four
(15:43):
different toppings for thepancakes and so everybody worked
in groups and the fun thing wasis you didn't know who all
signed up, so you made them putwith strangers and so seeing
everybody work together and allof a sudden they're like we're
going to have the best ones inthe class and they were able to
bring in their own mimosas,which helped with the calming of
the nerves, with meeting newpeople.
(16:04):
But it was so much fun, it wasan absolute blast.
We had a full class that dayand we made so many pancakes and
everyone was super excited totake their recipes home.
And it was just a wild idea wehad because we love to do brunch
here at home.
My kids personal favorite isdad's lemon ricotta pancakes
(16:24):
with a lemon compote and blueSorry, a lemon curd and a
blueberry compote on top, and sowe were like why don't we teach
other people to make it?
And it turned out really well.
They had so much fun.
We've gotten requests to dothat one again.
Speaker 1 (16:36):
Oh my gosh, I can only imagine a pancake flight.
Class is definitely it'sthinking out the box.
But I love the fact that shesaid people came together,
because that's what I'm alwaystelling my students.
I'm like you're just the host.
(16:57):
The class is really aboutpeople in the community getting
to know one another and you justguiding them along their
journey, and so I love that.
And so you recently actuallycelebrated a big goal with all
that in terms of income, but youactually closed out on a
four,000 day.
That is so amazing.
How did that feel?
Speaker 2 (17:12):
It felt really great and I also felt like I was
really tired.
It was.
You know, there's these thingsthat happen and you're like, oh,
this is amazing.
And then you're like, oh, howare we going to do it?
And you know it's funny when wefirst started, a half dozen box
of cookies felt overwhelming.
We were like, how are we goingto make three dozen cookies
today?
And you know, you grow and nowwe've got huge commercial size
(17:36):
double convection ovens in ourhouse and we have a separate
oven for our home food.
So you know, you learn and yougrow and you invest.
And now when someone's like, oh, can we have 500 cookies next
weekend?
We're like, sure, that's noproblem.
So that 4K day felt like it wasa little bit of a shock.
And then we're like, wait asecond, like that's, that's not
(17:56):
too much, like we can handlethat, that's going to be pretty
easy.
So it was.
It was really like a fullcircle moment where it just made
me think of how far we've comeand appreciative of everything
that God has blessed us with,everything that we have come our
way.
It's all the glory goes to him.
We couldn't do it without himand the blessings that he has
bestowed upon us and we couldn'tdo it without your guidance.
(18:18):
You've helped us through everystep of the way.
So it's just been.
You know, it was just.
It was nice to just kind of sitand reflect and think, man, our
hard work has brought us tothis point and it was just a
true blessing Absolutely,absolutely.
Speaker 1 (18:31):
And I love that, because too often we hear so
many bakers, oh, this economy oroh, I can't do it, or things
are slow for me, or that'llnever happen, or like, as you
know, we were talking beforebecause I teach you guys
multiple ways to make money andone of those is digital products
.
But I do always like to tell mystudents that is not the only
way.
So when I see people like youyou and Kyle bakery business
(18:56):
owners who have that 4K day fromcookies because another thing,
cookies in classes Some peoplewould also assume that you
couldn't do that unless you didwedding cakes or fondant or like
you have to do the big skillsto make the big bucks.
You come along and show thatit's possible.
So all is possible to anyonewho believes, and so that's one
of the things I love about youYou're always in the group and
(19:19):
always being so motivated, andso what advice would you have to
anyone who wants to get startedwith classes or wants to add
classes into their business?
Speaker 2 (19:30):
My very first piece of advice would be join the
entrepreneur community and getthe layout of it, because it
helped 110%.
We said she's got a great planhere.
How can we use it in a way thatmakes sense for us?
And so the structure justworked perfectly.
And my other piece of advicewould just be don't be scared.
You don't know what's going tohappen if you don't try, and you
(19:52):
miss 100% of the shots that youdon't take, and so if you're
not willing to try, you're notgoing to get anywhere and you're
going to make mistakes.
Things are going to happen andyou're going to learn and grow
from it every time.
But that's the point is, whenyou do mess up, you learn and
you're better the next timebecause of it and you just you
just have to start somewhere andit's.
It's worth it.
Speaker 1 (20:11):
Absolutely, you're right.
It is so totally worth it.
And so what are some of thefuture plans for Brown Butter
Bakery that you guys are workingon?
Speaker 2 (20:19):
So, like I mentioned, we're already booked to do
several more classes,particularly camps.
We're going to do one foryounger kids and then we're
going to do a high school ageclass, which I hope that goes
well, and then we have also beenplanning some digital classes,
so we're excited to roll thoseout, hopefully soon.
Speaker 1 (20:41):
That's what I love One step at a time, one thing at
a time, and so I'm so happyabout that.
Before I let you go, I do wantto say thank you so much for
coming on and for sharing withme, and we're going to play a
game of lightning round theremix, since this is your second
visit.
Are you ready?
Yes, ma'am, who is yourfavorite 90s artist?
(21:03):
Oh, nsync.
Speaker 2 (21:05):
I'm a youngin, I love NSYNC.
Chef, irene'm young.
I'm a young and I love NSYNC.
Speaker 1 (21:11):
Chef Irene was just on and she said the Backstreet
Boys.
So yeah, I love them all.
What is your favorite cartoon?
Speaker 2 (21:19):
Oh, my favorite cartoon.
I don't think I've thoughtabout that in a minute.
Oh man, I mean, I lovedwatching, like Rocket Power,
when I was a kid.
Speaker 1 (21:41):
I like that.
I like that and we'll leave itthere from the bottom of my
heart.
Megan, thank you so much forcoming on and just for updating
us with you and Kyle's successand continue.
Blessings to both you and Kyleas you continue to grow your
business in your local communitywith classes and with all the
other things that your heartdesires.
Speaker 2 (22:02):
Thank you so much for having me and allowing me to
speak.
Thank you for all the guidancethat you give us.
It has helped so much.
Speaker 1 (22:10):
Oh, you're more than welcome, darling.
Special thanks again to Meganfor coming on and sharing her
story and where they are now.
I love to see my studentselevate and I love to see my
students scale.
You know two things, twoquestions that I get asked a lot
.
One of the first is always youknow, should I do something?
(22:34):
Whenever people ask me they'llsay, well, should I do this or
should I do that?
Which one's better?
And I tell people there isn't abetter good, worse, anything
like that.
It's just that what may workfor one person may not work for
you, but you won't know if it'llwork for you until you go for
it and until you try it.
Which brings me to the secondthing.
(22:54):
People will ask me a lot Is itworth it?
And my response to that and mystudents always know I always
combat that and say I don't know.
Are you worth it?
Like, because anytime someonetells me that they're trying
something new and then they askis it worth it?
That depends.
Are you worth it?
Is your family worth it?
Is your future worth it?
(23:14):
Like, I think too often we findexcuses and reasons to not go
for things and we want to becomforted in life Like we just
want to know, okay, well, I'llgo for this.
I want to know that it's goingto be okay.
I want to know that I'm goingto get an A plus.
I want to know that, you know,like a microwave result, like
the sales will just tripleovernight.
And that's not business, that'snot even life.
(23:37):
Nothing is promised.
And so what I love about Meganand Kyle and what she said was
just that we just decided to gofor it.
Why not?
Just why not?
And every single time, they addsomething, they try something
new, they take a lesson, theylearn from it and then they get
better.
And so it's just amazing to seehow, again on episode 41, they
(23:59):
were celebrating a 1K day.
Amazing to see how, again onepisode 41, they were
celebrating a 1K day.
Now, with cookies, with classes, they're celebrating a 4K day.
And to be in business withintwo years and to have that level
of success, that is reallyamazing.
And so today I'm asking you areyou worth it?
If there's something in yourbusiness that needs to be
changed, or you want to take adifferent route, or maybe you've
(24:20):
been considering classes, youwant, want to teach local
classes via kids classes, adultsclasses, senior citizens.
What I love about classes isthat they're not quite like
digital products, although theyare somewhat similar, but you
know you're not really givingaway your prized recipes unless
you decide to.
This is more of a leisure thing.
(24:40):
You're literally walking peoplein your community through a fun
activity, so you don't have toworry about your competitor or
anyone coming.
This should be something fun,simple, 90 minutes that a person
gets to interact with you.
They get to see you and hearmore about your brand.
It doesn't matter if you'rebubbly, it doesn't matter if
you're introverted, becauseyou're going to always find your
people.
But it's just up to you to justoffer that brand experience so
(25:04):
that people can come into yourworld and get to know you.
And, like I tell people all thetime, you can literally earn
more money in one night justhosting one class than you can
baking all week long.
Because the amazing part isthat it doesn't matter if you're
a cookier, be it roll icing orbuttercream, or if you're a
caker, a cupcaker even mychocolatier and sweets people we
(25:24):
have people in my community whodo dipping classes.
The most amazing part is thatyou're only doing half the work.
You're providing the item andsomeone else is doing the rest,
and it really doesn't get anysweeter than that in our
industry as we get older,especially to all my ladies.
Being on the feet all the timeis not fun, standing over a hot
kitchen all the time is not fun,and so if you can find another
(25:48):
way to scale and to grow andthat allows you to do so and
still have fun, I think that'swhat it's all about.
I am so grateful to Kyle andMegan again, kyle was in the
background baking a move when wewere recording for updating us,
sharing their story but, morethan anything, sharing their
faith.
Those are some positive,positive kids, always sweet,
(26:11):
always respectful, alwayshelpful in our group whenever
she can, and I thank God and Ipray for more people, more
students, like that in mycommunity, and so thank them for
sharing their story.
I pray that it inspired you.
If you're looking to getstarted with classes, simply
check the show notes.
I will have the links and Iwould love to show you the same
(26:32):
way I teach my students how youcan earn an extra one, two,
three, four, whatever it is thatyou want to earn teaching local
classes, and when you're readyfor the next step, I'll be here
for that too.
Thanks so much for tuning in.
Take care and bye for now.
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