Carolyn McArdle:
Welcome to season three of Uniquely Small Biz by Selective Insurance, a podcast for small business owners to share their inspiring stories. I'm Carolyn McArdle, and we are so excited to be bringing you another round of insightful conversations with small business owners who are as unique as their ventures. Today, I'm joined by owner and creator of Mo’Pweeze Bakery, Christine Allen. Mo’Pweeze Bakery is a top eight allergen-free and vegan bakery serving New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Christine joins us to share her story, and give a little bit of sweet insight into running a successful business. So get ready, it's time for Uniquely Small Biz brought to you by Selective Insurance. I wanna jump right in and ask you, Christine, what makes Mo’Pweeze Bakery unique?
Christine:
So many things. First of all, Mo’Pweeze Bakery came out of a mom, myself, trying to figure out something, how to create something for my child. So I have 11 year old twins and they have a ... my son had a lot of food allergies and I had to create top allergen-free and vegan and all that stuff. So there's not a lot of bakeries out there that's doing what we do, and I think it's unique because there's so much passion and love and because it's my day to day life. That's what makes it so special and also very unique and also a niche business as well.
Carolyn:
Are you guys vegan, gluten-free, wheat-free, I mean, what's-
Christine:
Soy-free, yes. So we are-
Carolyn:
Soy-free, nut-free.
Christine:
Yeah. So, yep, so we are top 10 allergen-free. So that's dairy, eggs, nuts, gluten, soy, tree nuts, sesame, fish, shellfish, and mustard.
Carolyn:
Mustard.
Christine:
Mustard.
Carolyn:
Is there a mustard allergy?
Christine:
There's an allergy for everything. There's a corn allergy.
Carolyn:
Yeah (laughs).
Christine:
There's a potato allergy, you name it, it's out there.
Carolyn: Boy.
Christine:
So right now we are top 10 allergen-free. Yes.
Carolyn:
I have celiac, so I'm gluten-free.
Christine:
Oh, okay.
Carolyn:
So I just want you to know, I appreciate what you do, and I know the ingredients are more expensive.
Christine:
Yes, it is (laughs).
Carolyn:
And I know it's (laughs), yeah, I know it's difficult. But from the consumer standpoint, when I was first diagnosed with celiac and I was told no more flour, no more wheat, no more ride, no more barley, going to a bakery was not an option for me.
Christine:
Absolutely.
Carolyn:
I mean, in the beginning when you don't know, and this was 10 years ago or 12 years ago when I was diagnosed
... and even back then, nobody was gluten-free. And it's come a long way, but it's bakeries like yours and businesses like yours that I just wanna say thank you because I appreciate it so much that I can go to your bakery now and not just have one thing that's tuck back in the corner on the shelf, but you have a lot (laughs).
Christine:
I, (laughs), everything, everything. And that's the great thing about why I wanted to actually have a storefront, because I know for our family, my eldest, who's going to be 23 next week, he started out with just eight allergies, one being gluten-free and we had to drive all the way to New York just to get him a cupcake or a cake for his birthday 'cause there was nothing out there 20 years ago, you know.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
I remember him getting the Lundbergs Rice Cakes 'cause that's-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm, yeah. (laughs).
Christine Allen:
Yeah. (laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
Oh yeah, I'm familiar (laughs).
Christine Allen:
Yeah. So that's all he was able to have and I was like, I wanna create something where kids and family could come in and not just say, I could only have this one thing, but I wanted everything to be safe.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
We have created such a family community at the bakery. Um, we have this amazing wall where we have everyone write their names, where they're from, and we have people from Germany and Italy and all over the place that has actually come into the storefront. And they're so appreciative. And during COVID it was so hard because I'm a hugger and we're, parents are always so emotional when they come in and see that their child could eat a cupcake and be safe and just the smiles on their faces when they put their hands on the bakery cases and they look through it and they're like-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... "I could have everything." Like-
Carolyn McArdle:
yeah.
Christine Allen:
Just that look of joy and happiness. And then the mom start crying and they're like, "You have no idea." And I'm like, "I do. I do."
Carolyn McArdle:
Isn't that crazy?
Christine Allen:
And we hug and we cry and it's just wonderful. It's really nice.
Carolyn McArdle:
I, you know, I was thinking about it as you were telling me that just now about the kids that come in with their parents.
Christine Allen:
Yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
As an adult, I was relieved to find gluten-free bakeries and more gluten-free options, but, and, and just allergy-free in general. But then I think about it when you're talking about the standpoint of a parent, what that has to be like to say to your child-
Christine Allen:
Yeah. You can't have that.
Carolyn McArdle:
... "You can't have a cupcake here. You can't have ca-" that's gotta be just heartbreaking.
Christine Allen:
It is. It really is. I've been going through it for a lot, and especially now with my 11 year old son, his name is Madox, and his sister Sanye, his twin sister Sanye, she doesn't have any allergies at all. So she could have the cheese and the milk and the Cheetos and the Oreos and everything. And he just sits there like, you know, "Why can't I have that? Like, that's not fair."
Carolyn McArdle:
That's sad. Yeah.
Christine Allen:
So, you know, it's like not being invited to parties because, you know-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... like, nobody wants to take on the risk of having their child, you know.
Carolyn McArdle :
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
So we create that for parents that they could come in and they could get like a really nice cake. And the, the great thing about what we do at Mo’Pweeze Bakery is that we want their cakes to be even better than the regular cake. So we wanna make it awesome. We wanna make it amazing that even though we have allergies, doesn't mean that we can't have an amazing cake. Doesn't mean that we can't have an Elmo cake or superhero cake or whatever. So we do it all just for, just for the kids and for the parents too because it's such a joy when your kids feel included and, you know, involved.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
So it's an amazing feeling.
Carolyn McArdle:
Is your bakery 100% allergy-free-
Christine Allen:
Yes.
Carolyn McArdle:
... or do you just offer ... Okay.
Christine Allen:
No, we are-
Carolyn McArdle:
So cross contamination's not an option then?
Christine Allen:
No, definitely not. So we are top 10 allergen-free, and our facility is also top 10 allergen-free.
Carolyn McArdle:
Wow.
Christine Allen:
So I, we have customers that call in that says, you know, I can have gluten, but I can't have eggs, or I can have soy, but I can't. And I'm like-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... I'm sorry, that's the only way ... that's the only way I know how to bake.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
So there, (laughs) there is no subs-
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
There's no substitution. There is cross contamination when it comes to someone who may have a rice allergy. So we would have to, if it's out of our top 10, then all of those custom orders are done at the beginning of the day. So that there is no, you know, like flour particles or anything like that and everything. We have separate gloves and separate pans and all that stuff. So everyone is safe.
Carolyn McArdle:
I wish every business could take a page outta your book and do what you do-
Christine Allen:
Ah, thank you.
Carolyn McArdle:
... for the allergy people of the world. It, it's incredible. I went to a coffee shop yesterday, got a coffee and a frittata.
Christine Allen:
Mm-hmm.
Carolyn McArdle:
They said, "No wheat in the frittata." And I said, "Well, is it gluten-free?" Um, let me ask.
Christine Allen:
(laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
Came back, "Well there's no wheat, but is it gluten-free?"
Christine Allen:
Right.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah, it is.
Christine Allen:
Right.
Carolyn McArdle:
And I was like-
Christine Allen:
No.
Carolyn McArdle:
... I can't take the risks.
Christine Allen:
Exactly.
Carolyn McArdle:
You know, And so when you're describing your bakery and even the fact that you, if you have those custom orders, like for example, like you said, a rice allergy, you do it first thing in the morning when the kitchen is totally, totally, totally clean and nothing else has been prepared.
Christine Allen:
Right. Right.
Carolyn McArdle:
The respect that you have for your customers is pretty admirable.
Christine Allen:
Thank you. Well I have to do that-
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
... because I know for my son, and unfortunately he's our little Guinea pig (laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
(laughs) I know. Poor guy.
Christine Allen:
Poor thing. Because if we are doing something for him, so even though I am top 10 allergen-free, he actually can't just eat anything from my bakery. I still have to bake custom for him because one of the flours that I use, he's also allergic to. So when we do his products, we have to put it on the top of the shelf. We have to pull-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm.
Christine Allen:
... the plastic down over the bakery rack because the particles can't get on his product. So we know that from trial and error that just the particles alone can cause a reaction. So we take so much care in making sure, because all of my customers, kids, they're my kids too-
Carolyn McArdle:
Aw.
Christine Allen:
... because I know what happens to a child that gets a reaction. The lip swelling, the itching, anaphylaxis. I don't want that. I need to sleep at night (laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
So I always say like, we bake with so much love, so much care. And I'm like, there is ... if you're not having good, happy vibes in the kitchen, we have to go outside, take a break, take some deep breaths and come back in 'cause we wanted everything to be good. Like, you know, just good vibes (laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah. Yeah. How's that feel for you when you see these kids that come in and their hands are on the glasses, you said, or the people that come in from out of town or they're actually crying-
Christine Allen :
Yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
... because they're so happy to have found you. How does that feel like in your heart as a business owner?
Christine Allen:
It's a love fest. And I posted something on Instagram, I think it was last week, not as the week before, um, last week. And a customer came in, she brought me a plant and she was just saying how grateful she was that we were still there during COVID and everything we were still standing and she was so grateful for us.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
And then there was another parent who came in, she had three boys and they all had different allergies and they were all able to eat. And she was so emotional and it just like, my heart was just so full, like just-
Carolyn McArdle (10:41):
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
... joy and love. And it was like, what a love fest. I just like-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... I feel the love and it's, it's so amazing just to hear people's stories and they send us messages. People love our apple cider doughnuts 'cause sometimes people eat it and they're like, "Oh my gosh, I haven't had an apple cider or doughnut in 20 years 'cause-
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
... you can't get a side of doughnut that's gluten-free, you know. So-
Carolyn McArdle:
Not a good one.
Christine Allen:
Not a good one. Exactly (laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
(laughs).
Christine Allen:
So it's just, it's such a love fest. Like, you know, most of the times where you're getting people's feedback and you're seeing the kids and they're so happy when they get to-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... you know, eat a cookie or get a decorated cookie or just, just the simple things. It's like, it's the simple things that makes people so happy.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
Yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
And by the way, your cakes, I was looking online are beautiful.
Christine Allen:
Thank you.
Carolyn McArdle:
I mean, absolutely gorgeous.
Christine Allen:
Thank you. We have an amazing team of cake decorators and they, they do magic. They do magic every day. And it's amazing. I'm so thankful for the team that I have.
Carolyn McArdle:
Aw. Where did the name come from? I, I didn't look it up, but I have a guess.
Christine Allen:
Okay.
Carolyn McArdle:
Was it by chance one of your kids saying, I want more, please, but they said, mo pweeze, mo pweeze.
Christine Allen:
There you .... mo pwee- there you go. That's it.
Carolyn McArdle:
Is that really the story?
Christine Allen:
That really is the story (laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
Oh my gosh. I had a feeling, I'm like, what would this be? And I kept saying it out loud, mo pweeze, mo p- and I'm like, "That sounds like more, please. I wonder if it's the kids."
Christine Allen:
Yeah, that's it. So they had their birthday, second birthdays, but that's when the whole thing started.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
And I made banana muffins-
Carolyn McArdle:
Okay.
Christine Allen:
... for their birthday 'cause I couldn't, there was no one to make them a, a cake.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
There was no one to make my son a cake. So I made banana muffins and I handed it out and gave the kids and they went, "Mo pweeze." I was like, "Oh my gosh, that's so cute."
Carolyn McArdle:
(laughs) Aw. That is the cutest.
Christine Allen:
So that was the first is the thing asking for mo pweeze. It's like, oh my gosh, that's an amazing name. So that's where the name came from.
Carolyn McArdle:
That's adorable.
Christine Allen:
Thanks.
Carolyn McArdle:
I'm glad that was the answer.
Christine Allen:
Yes (laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
I really wanted that to be the answer. So that makes me very happy too.
Christine Allen:
Yes.
Carolyn McArdle:
Your history as far as being a baker, are you ... do you have a cooking background or a culinary background of any kind? Or did this just develop from you making banana muffins for the kids?
Christine Allen:
So the latter, absolutely. So no, I do not have a baking background at all.
Carolyn McArdle:
Hm.
Christine Allen:
I'm not even the cook in my family. My husband (laughs), my husband cooks.
Carolyn McArdle:
No, okay. Well, I would imagine after being at a bakery all day-
Christine Allen:
All day.
Carolyn McArdle:
... the last thing you wanna do when you get home is cook (laughs).
Christine Allen:
Cook. Exactly. So I don't have a baking background. This all came by divine intervention is what I always say.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
So I knew that I had to figure out a way to make something for our son. And everything came to me in dreams, which seems weird, but that's exactly how it happened. I did not know how to frost a cupcake. It came to me in dreams. The, my recipes came to me in dreams.
Carolyn McArdle:
Wow.
Christine Allen:
I know it's weird. But that is my story.
Carolyn McArdle:
That's awesome actually.
Christine Allen:
Yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
I mean that's really cool. Do you literally just ... did you wake up and go, "You know what? I think I know how to frost a cupcake." I-
Christine Allen:
Yes. Yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
Wow.
Christine Allen:
Yeah. And like there's a lot of things that, especially my custom items where people want to do like potato starch-free and rice-free and all of these things free.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
And I'm like, I don't know how. So unfortunately, which is my husband tells me all the time, it's not a good thing.
Carolyn McArdle:
(laughs).
Christine Allen:
I don't write the recipes down because it's all here for my custom blends.
Carolyn McArdle:
Wow.
Christine Allen:
So it's more like, you know, I'm, I'm putting something in and I'm like, I think I should add this and I think I should add that and it's more texture and like listening to the, the mixer and it's all ... I, I can't explain it, but that's how I do especially my custom blends. It just comes to me.
Carolyn McArdle:
By the way-
Christine Allen:
Mm-hmm.
Carolyn McArdle:
... I heard about your mixer situation that the New York Jets-
Christine Allen:
(laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
... is, that the Jets and Visa gave you a $10,000 gift that you were going to buy a new mixer with.
Christine Allen:
Yes.
Carolyn McArdle:
So what happened? Did that come through? Did you get the mixer?
Christine Allen:
So I definitely did get the mixer 'cause I really needed a new-
Carolyn McArdle:
Yes, yeah.
Christine Allen:
... a bigger mixer. So that definitely happened. That was ... I thought it was a prank (laughs). Yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
(laughs) I can imagine when you get an email from Visa and Jets-
Christine Allen:
And the Jets.
Carolyn McArdle:
... saying, we wanna give you money, yes.
Christine Allen:
Right. And I was like, What? And I actually, I missed the call. There was a voicemail-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... and it was two days later when they sent an email that they sent, left me a message. And I'm like, what? So-
Carolyn McArdle:
(laughs) They followed up saying, we want to give you this money really badly.
Christine Allen:
To give you the money (laughs). I know.
Carolyn McArdle:
What was the story behind that? Had you applied for it? Was it just somebody came in and liked your, your product? Like what, how did that happen?
Christine Allen:
So a fellow business owner actually saw this link somewhere-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... and they sent it to me and we filled it out. We sent it out, totally forgot about it. And then lo and behold, we were the winner of this $10,000 and they came to the store and in their official Green Jets thing and they did this whole production and physio and yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
That's incredible.
Christine Allen:
Yeah. Absolutely. Absolutely.
Carolyn McArdle:
You know what I say to that? Just a locally-owned business by a woman-
Christine Allen:
Yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
... who is doing this for the good of the people and for her kids. You deserved that $10,000.
Christine Allen:
Thank you.
Carolyn McArdle:
I'm so glad that went to you.
Christine Allen:
Thank you.
Carolyn McArdle:
That's awesome. Plus as we discussed, gluten-free, allergy-free, wheat-free, soy-free. Those products are not cheap. (laughing) So I mean, if anybody needed the money, I'm telling you-
Christine Allen:
Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely.
Carolyn McArdle:
... just for the product alone.
Christine Allen:
Just for the ingredients alone, it's amazing.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
And like sourcing the ingredients has been like such a challenge with everything going on.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
And we were having such a hard time finding like our flour blends and all that stuff.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
So it's been, it's a constant struggle. But you know, like you have to persevere, you have to keep pushing on because people are depending on you. So you, you have to keep going.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah. You know, you could have easily just done like a gluten-free bakery or you could have done a vegan bakery. And I know this probably has to do with your son and how many allergies he had, but is that why you went top 10 for the allergens that you avoid in your kitchen? Was it because of your son when you ... you know what I'm saying? Like you could have just done, hey, we're gluten-free and-
Christine Allen:
Right.
Carolyn McArdle:
... left it at that.
Christine Allen:
Right.
Carolyn McArdle:
So did you go all the way because of your son?
Christine Allen:
I did.
Carolyn McArdle:
Was that the reason?
Christine Allen:
I did.
Carolyn McArdle:
Okay. Yeah.
Christine Allen:
I absolutely did because I knew how much of a struggle it was for him.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
And at the time before COVID, I even created a play space-
Carolyn McArdle:
Hm.
Christine Allen:
... because he wasn't able to have a play date with any kids because of all the allergies that he had. And I knew if I was going through that, then other parents were going through that. So I wanted create such a s- I wanted to create such a safe haven for all of these kids that they could come in and feel like, "Oh, you can't touch this because it may have dairy. You can't touch the tables because it may have nuts." So I wanted it to be such a safe place for, for everyone. And I never thought about just being gluten-free or just vegan.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
You know, I wanted it to be totally safe for him and it's still not technically safe for him because I still have to do custom orders for him, but-
Carolyn McArdle:
(laughs) There's always something.
Christine Allen:
... you know, there's always something.
Carolyn McArdle:
There's always something.
Christine Allen:
There's always something.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
So that was my dream to be able to do that for him and for anyone else like him and more.
Carolyn McArdle:
You know what I love too, and I feel like I just know this about your bakery without even ... I've never tasted any of your products, but I have a feeling they taste really good. And as a gluten-free consumer-
Christine Allen:
(laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
... I certainly know we joked about that with the apple cider doughnut earlier. You can very easily as a gluten-free consumer or any of the all- other allergens have like, let's say a donut.
Christine Allen:
Right.
Carolyn McArdle:
And you take that one bite and then it just crumbles.
Christine Allen:
Right.
Carolyn McArdle:
I have a feeling that if somebody goes into your bakery and let's say they don't have any allergies and they order a cake or a cupcake or whatever, I'll bet you it tastes as good as what someone say the real thing.
Christine Allen:
Yes.
Carolyn McArdle:
Right? I have a feeling. And that is an art too, because that's tough. How does it feel for you to be a woman-owned business? You've gotta be so proud.
Christine Allen:
I am. I'm very proud. I'm a- I'm actually Jamaican by birth.
Carolyn McArdle:
Ah.
Christine Allen:
So you know a Jamaica.
Carolyn McArdle:
You're Jamaican.
Christine Allen:
Yes. I'm a Jamaican, Jamaican born (laughs)-
Carolyn McArdle:
No kidding.
Christine Allen:
... that came here here and worked hard and-
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
... had this, it wasn't even a dream of mine to open a bakery. That wasn't a thought in my head. But just because of circumstances-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... and I am, you know, proud to say that, you know, I am here. I'm a small business owner and I am-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... living the American dreams.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
Yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
What'd you do before this? Were you a stay at home mom or did you ... were in another profession?
Christine Allen:
No, I was actually in sales. I was actually selling optical frames. Yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
Whoa, What a jump.
Christine Allen:
Yep. What, I know. I know, I know. Definitely.
Carolyn McArdle:
(laughs) Do you ever look back and say-
Christine Allen:
No, no (laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
(laughs).
Christine Allen:
Wait, should I let you finish?
Carolyn McArdle:
Fair enough. (laughing) No, that's all we needed.
Christine Allen:
No (laughing).
Carolyn McArdle:
I'm really happy for you though. That's awesome. You mentioned social media earlier.
Christine Allen:
Mm-hmm.
Carolyn McArdle:
So how are you with social media? How do you use social media? Do you use it for advertising or do you just have a platform that you respond to comments or like what's your strategy with social media?
Christine Allen:
So with social media, for me, I do Instagram and I do, uh, Facebook.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
I feel like Instagram is a bit more immediate for me-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... because once you post something out that you're having, whether it's uh, sale or you know, like we'll be having, I don't know, like Halloween cookies or decorated cookies or whatever, whatever, then you'll start getting those popup like, you know, when will this be available, When would that be available? So I find that in- Instagram is such an amazing tool to use.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
I'm not as savvy with it. Like there are so many things that you could like add audio and this and that and so many things.
Carolyn McArdle:
You're preaching to the choir (laughing), you're preaching to the choir.
Christine Allen:
Oh my goodness, so many things.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
But it's such an amazing tool for marketing and advertising and I try to use it as much as I can. I don't have a marketing team, so I'm the one who's kinda like doing it as well.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
So it's a little, you know, like hard to try to get the post out on time and do all of this stuff. But you know, I'm trying, getting there.
Carolyn McArdle:
Boy, how many hours a day do you work?
Christine Allen:
A lot (laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah. Love that. You could tell.
Christine Allen:
A lot because, you know, I have ... get to the store like around 6:30 in the morning and then production is, until it's done. You know, production is never until a certain time 'cause-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... it's a bakery and you own it.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
And then I have the twins. So you come home and then it's soccer and it's music and it's this and it's that. So it's a lot of hours.
Carolyn McArdle:
So how do you market then? Strictly social and word of mouth?
Christine Allen:
So we do events as well and we also do-
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah, that's right.
Christine Allen:
... marketing like in ... there's like, we're in Denville in New Jersey, so we'll do like the Denville guide and we'll advertise that way as well so that it gets to more, get the word out a little bit more.
Carolyn McArdle:
Do you feel like you've got enough when it comes to customers or are you a business owner that says we could always take on more, We have the resources, bring it on. I mean, where do you ... do you see yourself wanting to expand to have other locations? Are you content with one, you know, having one location?
Christine Allen:
No, I definitely want to expand.
Carolyn McArdle:
Oh.
Christine Allen:
There's so many people that has said like, you know, come to Long Island. We have no- especially Long Island, they're like, come to Long Island, we have nothing there or-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... let's go to Philadelphia. We have nothing there. Come to New York, we have nothing there. So it would be amazing to expand, but we need the resources to do that. As you would say, speaking to the choir, but yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
We right now we sell to Whole Foods. So we have our cupcakes and above 45 or 50 or so Whole Foods and we sell to some shop rice and a few mom and pop stores. But yeah, we wanna get, you know, our products out to as many locations as possible so that everyone could feel the love, you know.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
Have our amazing products and know about us 'cause we've been in business for quite a while and I feel like there's so many people that still have no idea who we are, that we even exist, so opportunities, I-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm. Who would love you if they found you?
Christine Allen:
Absolutely. So I feel like opportunities like this, like speaking with you-
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Christine Allen:
... like gives us some exposure to say, Oh my goodness, I didn't know that this existed or that, you know, this was even a possibility.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah. That's so neat. You're still kind of a blank canvas, you know.
Christine Allen:
Yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
You've done so well in one location. It's like, for you the possibilities are, are endless.
Christine Allen:
Yes, absolutely.
Carolyn McArdle:
So do you think that is your sort of ... it's a big question to ask, like what's your plan? But is that your plan to, to start to expand, to continue doing interviews like this, going to the, the events in town? Is that how you think you're gonna do it or do you have a bigger plan that we haven't talked about? I mean, have you hired somebody or have you talked to somebody who can help or-
Christine Allen:
So right before COVID, we were actually speaking with someone in regards to like helping us to expand, but then COVID happened and then everything else happened.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah.
Christine Allen:
So we feel like we're back to square one. Vegan Dale last week was like the first event that we've done since 2019 and that felt, you know, safe enough for us to go and that was great. But we would like to actually sit and speak with someone who could actually help us to scale up to where we need to be. Because I feel like just myself and my, pretty much my husband is my partner, just, you know, just us, we are not gonna get to where we need to be.
Carolyn McArdle:
On your own.
Christine Allen:
On our own.
Carolyn McArdle:
You need assistance to come in and guidance.
Christine Allen:
Yeah, absol- yep, absolutely.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah. Well, I mean you're doing so well already. I can't imagine you're not gonna expand at some point. You had a little hiccup with the pandemic as did, as you-
Christine Allen:
Right. Everybody. Yes. Yes.
Carolyn McArdle:
So many, but, but you're gonna get there. I'm excited to see what's next for you.
Christine Allen:
Thank you. Thank you. Me too (laughs).
Carolyn McArdle:
So happy for you. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know I can't wait and I'm definitely placing my order. That was not a lie (laughs), in about five minutes.
Christine Allen:
(laughs) I'll look for your name.
Carolyn McArdle:
Okay. Please do. I appreciate you talking with me today. Thank you Christine so much.
Christine Allen:
Thank you for having me. This was really fun. Thank you so much.
Carolyn McArdle:
You got it. All right, man, that was great. Joining us now to speak about some of the considerations for building an exciting small business in the bakery space and achieving a successful marketing strategy is the Vice President, Director of Marketing, Cindy Heismeyer. Cindy, I wanna start off. October is National Women's Small Business Month. Obviously I understand you're a huge advocate for advancing women in business. So what are some things that women can do in your opinion, in any industry to help sort of advance their career?
Cindy Heismeyer:
I think it's a real critical piece where we talk about in sales, a lot of people know this, always be closing the ABCs of sales. For women in any kind of career, I think they need to be thinking about ABL, always be learning. That's continuous learning across all different types of things both learning more about your profession, learning from others, learning ways to be successful, learning how to fail with grace. I think it's that learning piece that is at the core of this success.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah. And you know, this podcast in particular has had several successful female business owners on so far. So in your opinion, because you're so familiar with this and you see it so much, do you see a certain trait or a collective attitude that you think is contributing to their success that maybe other women that are listening to the podcast could grab some takeaways from that?
Cindy Heismeyer:
You know, it's interesting because there are more women on our podcast, but also more women who are business owners in general. There's upwards of 13 million in the US today. But one common trait that I see is the ability to problem solve. Women are usually pretty good at that. We have to do that in all sorts of parts of our lives, whether it be our personal life, our professional life, and that's what's the core the entrepreneurs who are successful. They tend to find a problem, see it, analyze it, trying to figure out a solution and then bring it to life. And it comes to life not only for them and their business, but for others. And I think it's having that, that intellectual curiosity that is really a key to starting a small business.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah, I think so too. I think as entrepreneurs and, and women business owners, it's like you kind of, we've talked to so many where you have to know all facets of the industry. Things that you never dream that you would need to know. But as women, I think we figure out a way to get those answers that we're looking for and bring in resources if we need to and, and that's certainly part of what makes them successful. I'm sure you see that all the time.
Cindy Heismeyer:
I do. And I think that you kind of hit on something there that I really wanna bring forward. It's that networking, right? So yeah, we always have to be learning, but we don't have to know it all. We have to surround ourselves with other people who know other things. There's certain things that I'm just flat out not good at, and I probably won't be even if I try. But I know other people who are, and I can leverage the relationships and the network that I have to bring them around me. And I think that sometimes people make the mistake and think that, oh, if I have more people with seats around the table, then my power or my position might be diluted. I find it to be just the opposite. We magnify each other and then leverage that power to be even greater when we have other people around us, especially other people who are different from us.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Cindy Heismeyer:
So really kind of expanding that network and finding people who maybe look different from us or think differently than we do and putting them all together, that's where the magic happens. I was just at a women's leadership conference this past week and you know, we were talking about leaning in and lifting up and making sure that when we are trying to lift others up, sometimes we lean in, sometimes we need to lean back and be a little bit more intentional about the space that we create for others so they have an opportunity. And I think most of us would agree that we had others who were able to do that for us, and the impact that it had on our careers and our lives, and we need to really be intentional about doing that for others.
Carolyn McArdle:
I love that reminder. That is so important. I appreciate you bringing that up. According to the US Small Business administration, about 42% of all businesses in the US are women-owned. How can other women join this upward trend? How can they leverage their passion to build a business? Kind of a big question, right? It's basically me saying, Cindy, what do they do? Like how do we get started? But again, I know that you have so much experience in this and you talk to so many people and you see it so often. So like what would your advice be to these women that are just starting out that have these dreams?
Cindy Heismeyer:
It's passion, but it's passion with purpose. And it's when you combine those two, because sometimes there's plenty of things that we may be passionate about, but it really doesn't have a purpose. There's other things that you might be very purposeful about, but if you don't have the passion behind it, it doesn't really work. It's when you combine those two, you know, just like Christine did for Mo'Pweeze. She had a passion for making sure that everyone was going to be able to have food around the table no matter what. Whether they had a gluten allergy or some of the other top 10. And that was her purpose, but the passion came through to find that solution for her family and for others.
Carolyn McArdle:
And now she's got people coming from outta state-
Cindy Heismeyer:
Right.
Carolyn McArdle:
... to buy her product. They're flocking to her because they ... like, it's almost like they feel her energy and they feel her passion and, and want to support plus she just has plain good products. There's that too. So I love how that has come together for her.
Cindy Heismeyer:
And she said it with the learning that we went and talked about earlier, right? So she didn't know anything about being a baker. She worked in, you know, selling optical frames and doing that kinda stuff. And she was willing to try and learn and maybe fail a little bit, you know, use that as learning to fuel your, your success a little bit more, and kept pushing forward because she so strongly believed in what she was trying to achieve. And lots of times it's, it's that passion that kinda helps you fuel those past those rough bumps in the road.
Carolyn McArdle:
I was just gonna say, those rough bumps, while they're not fun for any of us, if you can get past them on your own, figure out a way, make it happen. Oh my gosh, you feel so amazing and you're on the top of the world afterward. I did that. I know how to do that. I can navigate tough waters, you know. And so I love that ... I know she had that along the way and I love that she was able to figure out a way to get past that and continue on. It's sort of like your own pat on the back really and saying, "Hey, I can do this, I can do this, I can navigate anything."
Cindy Heismeyer:
So it, it's so funny that you mentioned that because at one of the women's agency leadership conferences we held a few years ago, we were talking about that, how women don't always give themselves the pat on the back. Many of us, myself included, we were kind of raised not to be boastful and you don't need to talk about your success, you can just quietly go about your business and others will notice or not, but that's how it was. And this woman who's an agency partner of ours and someone who I consider just a colleague and a friend, her name is Casey Campianrena, and she brings sunshine into any room she walks into. And when she was on the panel, I asked her some final thoughts about how to be successful. And I will never forget this, and I've shared it with millions of people. She said, "Sometimes you just have to throw your own parade."
Carolyn McArdle:
Wow.
Cindy Heismeyer:
Right. I loved it. I loved it. We actually used it as a hashtag for that event, and it was a few years ago, but I just saw her this past week and I told her once again, I am always so mindful of that, that sometimes you just have to throw your own parade.
Carolyn McArdle:
Yeah. It's so hard to do (laughs).
Cindy Heismeyer:
Yeah.
Carolyn McArdle:
It's such a good reminder though.
Cindy Heismeyer:
It is. And sometimes people need to encourage you to do it. You know, I heard you talking to Christine and talking about the grant that she received from the New York Jets and Visa. That came because someone in her network who believed in her suggested that she fill out a form for this grant. And when she was doing so, that was a little mini parade for herself.
Carolyn McArdle:
Mm-hmm.
Cindy Heismeyer:
She had to kinda say what was so great about her business, why it was important, the impact she was making. And that little mini parade she threw turned out to be a $10,000 award, which is quite the ticker take parade at the end of the day.
Carolyn McArdle:
Go figure. And no one is sitting here saying, you were bragging or-
Cindy Heismeyer:
Right.
Carolyn McArdle:
You know, you were boastful. They, it's the opposite. It's like, congratulations, you deserve that, you work hard and you built this empire. So-
Cindy Heismeyer:
Exactly
Carolyn McArdle:
... to that, good for her.
Cindy Heismeyer:
Yep.
Carolyn McArdle:
I know that at Selective, you have an employee resource group called Women at Work, which you are the founder and the leader for. So what inspired the creation for that group and and what's sort of the mission of that group for you?
Cindy Heismeyer:
Well, there are a few of us who have been involved in this since its inception. And it's interesting because it was born out of a different group. So the Women's Agency leadership group that I mentioned earlier, we had created this on behalf of our agency partners because one woman in our region had really felt passionately about that and surrounding herself with women and kind of bringing that back and giving back to our agency partners that way. And a number of us started and leaned in with her and founded that group. And it was a huge success.
Carolyn McArdle:
That's-
Cindy Heismeyer:
It was so successful that employees said, "We would like some of that. Can we have that opportunity to network and to learn and to be surrounded by other strong women?" So then Women at Work was born from that.
Carolyn McArdle:
That's really neat. Good for you guys.
Cindy Heismeyer:
Thank you. I appreciate it. It was great, Carolyn. Thank you so much.