HOW MY BAKING BUSINESS EVOLVED OVER THE PANDEMIC

by Molly Wilk

Like most of us, I remember the day the world shuts down. I was sitting in the living room on our gray velvet couch, stunned but optimistic and unprepared for what would come. I turned to my partner, Francois, and said, “Well, perfect, I’ll have time to work on my cookbook!”

Just two months before, a publisher had unexpectedly reached out asking me to write whatever I wanted, to send over some ideas. It was an offer I couldn’t refuse! I’d always wanted to write a cookbook but didn’t think I was anywhere near that stage in my career yet.

In 2013, I’d quit my digital marketing job after years of dreaming of making something of my passion in the kitchen. I’d seen other coworkers take a sabbatical or move to part-time to spend more time at home or pursue a hobby, and why couldn’t I? I’d worked up to the change slowly but surely.

I was terrified to make a move, though, as I’d been told success was found in a 9 to 5 desk job, moving up the ladder, and maybe just maybe making my way into a tippy-top position in a company. Either I could take a break and come back to my 9 to 5 job easily, or I could do something entirely different. I loved what I did and was already managing a team of 6 people at the age of 25, but in the back of my mind, I knew I needed to decide soon.

So that’s how I found my way to Paris, studying pastry at Le Cordon Bleu and eventually teaching classes in Versailles.

Francois and I had just moved to Versailles. My business was starting out, with our new apartment having the perfect space for holding small inperson classes. I had several people booked in for 2020 and was so excited about what the year would bring. In a moment of panic, I emailed each one saying, “we will see how it goes. If you don’t mind, I’ll hold onto the payment for now, and we can reschedule in a couple of months.”

Then the cancellations started rolling in as flights were grounded, and we went into confinement. The initial feeling that I’d take the time to relax and write my cookbook quickly spiraled as I issued refund after refund. These classes were my revenue source for the next several months, and as a freelancer, I wouldn’t have any extra pay coming in.

Relatively soon after my panic attack, I was scrolling through Facebook and saw a note from someone talking about an online class they were taking. It was a three-week course learning different Thai recipes. I’d never taught a paid online class, but I certainly had taught online.

For the last year, I’d been tuning in once a month to Instagram Live to teach people what I called a “Surprise Bake Along .”I provided the ingredients and equipment they’d need in advance but not the name of what they would be making. We would jump on altogether, and I would lead about 30-50 people through an easy recipe with Francois behind the camera calling out questions people put in the comments. It was so much fun, and why couldn’t I turn this into a little side business during the pandemic?

I did minimal research, set up a page on my website with all the necessary links for people to buy the first course, “French Macarons and Cream Puffs,” and put it out into the world. That first course sold 100 places. Then I closed the doors; how could I handle more than 100 people live?

I’d never taught a group that large before.

I jumped into it, Francois as the cameraman, me running around the kitchen teaching and dancing, and it was a massive success! So, I opened up the course again, and when 100 people signed up, I knew I was on to something!

This quick shift and the pandemic were rapidly turning my business around into one of its most profitable years yet.

I started working like crazy on recipes for my cookbook and teaching them online. It was an incredible way for me to share what I felt was a perfect recipe and have it tested over and over again by hundreds of students worldwide. Each question I received I took to heart, adjusting the recipe just a little bit here or there so it would be clearer. Through Zoom, I could also see into everyone’s kitchen and see what they were making. If something didn’t look just how I wanted, I’d see what I could do to make it so.

Over the next year, I taught more than a thousand students and painstakingly wrote 60 recipes for my cookbook. I don’t even want to know how much butter I bought! And you really don’t want to know how much I spent on shipping flour from the US to test the more finicky recipes.

My business had evolved from depending on in-person classes and workshops to an online approach teaching people worldwide how to make French pastries out of their homes with easy-to-find ingredients.

The community created during that difficult time has stayed in place. We were there for each other in sugar and sweatpants, baking to forget and finding joy in creativity. The French Pastry Made Simple cookbook release was an utter success, and now the bulk of my business is online with live and recorded courses.

Molly Wlik

Molly is the author of two cookbooks: French Pastry Made Simple and Macarons Recipe Ebook. www.MollyJWilk.com

@MollyJWilk on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok