KAREN: WELCOME BACK, THE FOUNDER SWEETIES BAKERY. HI, TERESA. YOU BROUGHT CUPCAKES. TELL US ABOUT THE SWEET T PASSES BAKERY STORY. IT IS SUCH A GREAT STORY. >> IN 2016, I JUMPED OUT OF CORPORATE. I USED TO DO DATA ANALYTICS FOR HARVARD AND DECIDED THAT I WANTED TO START A BAKERY. I HAVE A NOT ALLERGY AND HAVE A HARD TIME FINDING BIG GOODS. I THOUGHT IT WAS UNFAIR THAT OTHER PEOPLE COULD NOT FIND THE SWEET TREATS THEY LIKE JUST BECAUSE THEY HAVE A -- JUST BECAUSE THEY HAVE AN ALLERGY. ONE YEAR AND IT IS ACTIVITIES FOR YOU. SO I WROTE AN AMAZING BUSINESS PLAN WITH THE HELP FOR THE DEATH OF THE CENTER FOR WOMEN ENTERPRISE. I THEN FIND COMMONWEALTH KITCHEN AND THEY WERE DOING THIS PILOT PROGRAM. I DID THE PROGRAM AND LEARNED EVERYTHING ABOUT SCALING AND LICENSING, ALL OF THE STUFF ABOUT RUNNING A FOOD BUSINESS. I LOST IN NOVEMBER OF 2016. AND THEN, SO, WE HAD A LITTLE BIT OF A ROUGH START FIGURING OUT ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND SO I WENT FOR MAKING 24 CUPCAKES IN MY KITCHEN TO 224 CUPCAKES AT A TIME. >> THAT IS AROUND-THE-CLOCK BAKING. >> IT WAS DEFINITELY A CHANGE FROM MY DESKTOP. I CAN LIFT 50 POUNDS OF FLOUR. >> WHAT HAPPENS WITH THE WHOLE FOODS THING? >> WHOLE FOODS ORDERED 48,000 MINI PIES FROM ME. DID DO A THREE INCH PERSONAL SIZED BY. WE HAVE BLUEBERRY, CHERRY, AND APPLE. THE THING ABOUT BAKED GOODS IS THEY ARE NOT OVER SWEET. BLUEBERRY TASTE’S LIKE BLUEBERRY. APPLE TASTE LIKE APPLE. WE HAVE SOUR CHERRY WITH A LITTLE HINT OF VANILLA. >> I WANT TO ASK JEN. THAT IS MORE ABOUT WHAT COMMONWEALTH KITCHEN DOES. >> AND ONE OF THE POSTER WOMEN FOR THE WORK WE DO AND HOW WE EXPERIMENT ON TRYING NEW THINGS. ONE BY ONE, WE WERE TALKING TO THEM AND SAYING, I DO NOT THINK YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT IT TAKES TO RUN A FOOD BUSINESS. YOU WANT TO OPEN UP A CAFE, AND YOU ARE NOT READY FOR THAT. 240 CUPCAKES 48,000 MINI PIES, IT IS A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PROCESS. >> HOW DO YOU RAMP UP? >> EXACTLY. WE LOST A PROGRAM, PARTED WITH LAWYERS FOR CIVIL RIGHTS, AND IT IS A 13 WEEK CLASS SPECIFICALLY FOR THE SOME PEOPLE OF COLOR THAT WALKS THEM THROUGH EVERYTHING IT TAKES TO START A FOOD COMPANY. TERESA WAS OUR GUINEA PIG IN OUR VERY FIRST CLASS WHEN WE WERE NOT SURE IT SENSE TO DO THAT. SHE WAS AT OUR PITCH NIGHT. IT WAS A GAME CHANGER FOR HER AND ALSO FOR US. IT BECOMES A SIGNATURE THING TWICE A YEAR. KAREN: HOW DO YOU RAMP UP FROM MAKING A COUPLE DOZEN CUPCAKES TO FILLING A HUGE ORDER FOR WHOLE FOODS? >> A LOT OF COFFEE. BUT REALLY, I PARTNERED WITH THE PEOPLE FROM COMMONWEALTH KITCHEN. THEY WERE INSTRUMENTAL IN HELPING ME FIGURE OUT HOW TO SCALE. WHEN YOU ARE USED TO MAKING 500 MINI PIES AND YOU ARE LIKE LATE, I NEED TO PRODUCE 3000 PIES PER DAY, HIGHER 14 PEOPLE, AND I WAS GOING THROUGH 150 POUNDS OF FLOUR A DAY. >> IT IS ALSO ABOUT QUALITY CONTROL. YOU WANT EACH PIE TO TASTE AND LOOK THE SAME IN THE CRUST TO BE THE SAME. >> WE HAD TO WORK THROUGH WITH HER EVERYTHING FROM, HOW DOES SHE SORT STUFF AND HOW WILL SHE PAY FOR ALL OF THIS? UPFRONT? PACKAGING, WHAT IS THE BOX, HOW WILL SHE GET IT THERE, WHAT IS THE DISTRIBUTION PROCESS. THE COMPLEXITY IS INCREDIBLE. PEOPLE THINK IT IS A PYLORIC CUPCAKE, LIKE IT IS SO MUCH MORE COMPLICATED THAN THAT. >> THE LEAST OF MY PROBLEMS WAS THE RECIPE IN MAKING A PIE. I KNEW HOW TO DO THAT. IT WAS ALL THE OTHER WORKING PARTS THAT REALLY MADE ME FEEL LIKE AN ENTREPRENEUR, LIKE A CEO. I RAN THAT BUSINESS WELL. THAT REALLY HELPED WITH MY ENTREPRENEURIAL CONFIDENCE TO SAY HEY, I CAN DO THIS. MY HUSBAND IS IMPRESSIVE ME NOW. >> WE TALK ABOUT THAT ON CAM -- OFF CAMERA. WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO PARTICIPATE? >> I DID IT LAST YEAR AND IT IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS TO DO. IT IS ONE OF MY GRANDMA’S RECIPE IS THAT IS NOSTALGIC WITH ME AND I LOVE STEER -- SHARING IT WITH THE WORLD. MY GRANDMOTHER BAKED FROM SCRATCH AND I MAKE EVERYTHING FROM SCRATCH. I USED HER AS MY BASELINE AND THEN I CREATE UNIQUE FLAVORS FROM A LOT OF THOSE RECIPES SHE MADE. >> WE TALKED ABOUT YOUR HUSBAND BUT WHAT ABOUT YOUR OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS? ARE THEY PRACTICE FAMILY RECIPES NOW BEING SHARED? WHAT IS THEIR REACTION? >> IT HAS BEEN AMAZING. WHEN I DID THE WHOLE FOODS ORDER, MY WHOLE FAMILY JUMPED IN. MY AND WOULD LEAVE WORK AS AN ACCOUNTANT AND COME LIKE, WHAT WOULD -- WHAT DID WE DO TODAY, AND WE ALL PACKED EYES AND IT WAS AMAZING. MY FAMILY IS A GREAT SUPPORT SYSTEM FOR ME. I AM URGENTLY FROM DORCHESTER. TRY TO GET OUT AND TALK TO A LOT OF THE YOUTH IN DORCHESTER AND THE SURROUNDING AREAS. I WANT THEM TO SEE I WAS ABLE TO DO THIS. >> HOW DO PEOPLE GET INVOLVED IN THE STARTUP PROGRAM, START UP POSSIBILITY? >> CAN FIND INFORMATION ON OUR WEBSITE. WE WILL START THE APPLICATION PROCESS IN ANOTHER MONTH. WE WILL START THAT BEFORE SEPTEMBER. ALL OF THAT INFORMATION IS ON OUR WEBSITE. >> YOU HAVE TO HAVE AN IDEA OR RECIPE? HOW DO YOU KNOW YOU ARE READY? >> MOST PEOPLE COME IN WITH A GREAT RECIPE AND THEY THINK THEY ARE READY. EVERY JANUARY, EVERYONE IS QUITTING THEIR JOB AND THINKING THEY HAVE THE BEST RECIPE EVER. MOST OF OUR JOB IS CONVINCING THEM NOT TO DO THAT. IT IS REALLY HARD TO MAKE ANY MONEY. WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR IS THEY HAVE AN IDEA THAT MAKES SENSE AND THEY HAVE OFTEN PICTORIAL GRIT. IF THEY CANNOT STAY WITH IT, THEY WILL NEVER BE SUCCESSFUL. >> THANK YOU FOR WATCHING. FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, AND TWITTER. HAVE A GREAT REST OF YOUR DAY OR WE HOPE YOU GET SOME GOOD EATING IN. TAKE CAR