IBIE Retail Recap 2013 - 4

A Land of
Opportunity
T

he massive show ﬂoor at the International Baking Industry
Exposition (IBIE) proved a golden land of opportunity
for thousands of bakers who convened in Las Vegas, NV,
to check out ﬁrsthand the latest new product innovations, view
technical demonstrations and learn from valuable educational
sessions that revolved around a single mission: Be innovative and
more successful.
Speaking at the Oct. 6 session "Retail Bakery Design," Jim Kline
of The Ensol Group urged retail bakery owners to begin with
a clear vision of which products you want to make and what
markets you want to serve before starting your design process.
"Deﬁne your target customer and establish your
product offerings," he recommends. "One common
mistake I see is bakeries taking on too much."
Bakery owner Kelly Delaney of Cakes for Occasions
in Danvers, Mass., stresses that customers may
urge you to make lots of different products, but
it's important to stick with your core product line
to keep your business focused and build a strong
brand. Her Boston area store completed a recent
renovation to create an inviting atmosphere inside
the bakery where customers felt truly special.
When asked how she ﬁnanced the expansion, in
which they doubled their retail space, Delaney says
that her loyalty to the same local banker over her
17 years in business proved beneﬁcial in getting
the necessary ﬁnancing. "It's important to have a
banker who knows you and believes in your business," she urges. "I've never hopped around."
Janice Jucker of Three Brothers Bakery in Houston
told attendees of another IBIE educational seminar,
"Online Bakery Sales," that your online customers
are not as price sensitive as those who walk in your
door, so it is imperative to leverage your website as
a marketing tool to build greater online sales.
Another speaker at the online sales session, Felix
Sherman of Ambrosia Bakery in Baton Rouge, LA,
04 < 2013 IBIE Recap | bakemag.com

advised that online sales lead to fewer order mistakes, happier
customers and higher sales overall.
"When you have people standing in front of your and trying to
explain a cake order, there tends to be a higher possibility of
errors," he says. "The neat thing about online is it is what you
see. You get to promote and introduce new items. It's a great
visual tool and you are always current and up to date. It's also
very low cost for order taking, and it's a virtual catalog for your
products 24/7. I've got customers placing online orders on
Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve and in the middle of the night."
Busken Bakery has started selling its popular original iced
cookies, breads, coffee cakes and pies online, in addition to its
retail locations. For anyone looking to add online sales to their
website, Dan Busken recommends starting slow and making sure
your products will hold up to the rigors of shipping across the
state or even across country. "Focus on key products with good
shelf life and can ship well," he says.

Technical demonstrations
The IBIE show featured a smorgasbord of interactive demonstrations in which technical experts shared creative on-trend
formulas and professional techniques for innovative new product
ideas.

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IBIE Retail Recap 2013

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