Five Things I’ve Brought from My Events & Music Background into a Cottage Bakery

And Where It Has Gotten Us After 2 Months in Business

About two months ago, my wife received her official registration number from our county health department as an official cottage bakery. Which came actually rather quickly after she expressed her interest in starting something new — maybe selling baked goods from our home. After trying a few recipes, we quickly found a gluten-free cinnamon roll recipe that she crafted which turned out really good. Scratch that– it was (and still is) fabulous.

So we dove in; researching the legalities and having our neighbors try out some samples. We received approval from our HOA, our neighbors, became certified in food sanitation, and rolled out Saintly Cinnamon Rolls. If you want to know more about the company and what came behind it, check out my wife’s website and follow her on socials to see more of her amazing story.

I have had an eclectic background in both the events/business arena and as a musician, but not really much in terms of helping at a bakery… but I knew there had to be some values and ideals that could crossover. Now after two months in, I reflect on 5 things I have brought into helping my wife with her cottage bakery.

1. Curating an Experience – From Concert Halls to Kitchen Counters

• Programming: that moment in a concert prep when everything clicks. The program will work because it is not all over the place. Same applies to starting a business. Simple scales and complexity fails. We keep it simple for now – 1 menu item. 1 delicious menu item.
• Application: Creating a welcoming “show” from order to pickup: the order experience, the approach of the customer to pickup their order on our front porch, the packaging in our cooler… it is all part of the welcoming experience for a patron.
• Result: Sharing with customers why each batch feels like a moment of beauty, in multiple senses.

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2. Rhythm and Routine – The Importance of a Strong Rehearsal (Baking) Schedule

• Musician’s discipline: Consistent rehearsals help perfect technique.
• Bakery parallel: Coming down with a rhythm in the kitchen to roll out fresh batches calls for a musician’s perfection in timing and reading your partner’s cues.
• Where it’s gotten us: A dependable routine—even on Day 60, we know by mid-morning, our cinnamon rolls will hit the sweet spot for at least 24 – 36 people (depending on size of the batches ordered – today we rolled out 28 rolls before 8:30 am).

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3. Attention to Detail – Tuning the Nuances

• In performance: A conductor notices even the subtlest intonation shifts.
• In baking: Measuring temperature, adjusting timing of proofs, and measurements down to the 1/2 tablespoon—precision matters.
• Outcome: Consistent structure, texture, and flavor notes that customers come back for.

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4. Storytelling Through Every Bite & Post

• Musical narratives: Each piece has its arc: rising, falling, resolution.
• Bakery version: We share our story—why we choose local ingredients, or why the logo is what it iEverything has a purpose and a story where it comes from.
• Customer connection: People don’t just taste—they feel a story and a connection. They link us, in even more purpose.

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5. Leading with Community – Drawing People In

• Event experience: Bringing artists and audiences together to create community.
• At the cottage bakery: Showing up for pop-up events, selling extras to commuters and those out walking on the street, and inviting neighbors in.
• Result: We’ve built a small, supportive circle of loyal patrons in just two months—real relationships, not just transactions. We have met more of our neighbors in the past two months than we have in over two and a half years since we moved here.

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Where We Are After Two Months

• Steady rhythm: We now have weekly baking drops, routine ingredient pickups, and a fine-tuned recipe with each bake cycle.
• Growing community: Over 80 pre-order customers, this is a customer base that routinely snags all available pre-orders well before the bake day arrives.
• Meaningful momentum: I’ve discovered that behind every batch is an opportunity—artistically or gastronomic—to bring beauty into someone’s day. My wife’s business is slowly building a following and making a name for herself in the baking community around us. A community that is just as niche as being a musician or events professional… a community we’re excited to have discovered.

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In the last nine weeks, I’ve found that baking isn’t just a kitchen science, it’s a performance. With my musician’s ear and timing, a teacher’s detail, and community-builder’s heart, we’re weaving art and nostalgic nourishment together. I’m grateful to stand beside my wife and shape this bakery not just with gluten-free flour and choreographed kitchen dances, but with rhythm, melody, and a story we’re making our own.