Travis Gerjets is back on the podcast and holy dinah, he's got a five year old bakery now! A coffee shop, cafe and airstream trailer full of awesomeness too.  

On this episode, Mark and Travis dig deep into the prairie baking mythos, talk about Prairie Sky Breads and the Minot food scene, about building a bakery that doesn't kill the baker, and embrace their shared love of amazing baking teams.

There's also talk of The Bakery Leadership Circle, a leadership and change program for bakery owners and senior leaders, kicking off in March 2025.  Apply now!

Helpful Links

Prairie Sky Breads

@prairieskybreads on Instagram

Support the Podcast Here!

Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website

The Bakers4Bakers Community

Mark's Blog, with the Bakernomics series

Mark on Instagram

Produced and hosted by Mark Dyck

Theme song and music by Robyn Dyck

Orange Boot Human logo by Fred Reibin

Lisa and Nic Romano had careers in food and hospitality, and got into market baking so Nic could stay home with his young family.  But when business took off and they had a chance for a Big Leap, they both dove in, taking over The Breadery in 2023.  Now they are delivering wholesale bread around the state, running a full retail bakery (complete with olive oil tasting!) and are still attending four markets. 

In this episode, Mark learns more about the effort involved in taking over an existing bakery, merging two passionate customer bases together, and keeping the family intact and engaged in a massive bakery project. 

There is also the Bakery Leadership Circle, which is accepting applications for the Spring 2025 session!

Helpful Links

The Breadery

@the_breadery on Instagram

Support the Podcast Here!

Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website

The Bakers4Bakers Community

Mark's Blog, with the Bakernomics series

Mark on Instagram

Produced and hosted by Mark Dyck

Theme song and music by Robyn Dyck

Orange Boot Human logo by Fred Reibin

Tim Kastner loves bread and he loves the solitude of bread baking.  He also loves working at the Bread Lab, a wholesale bread bakery in St. Paul, Minnesota.  

In this episode, Tim shares the origins of the Bread Lab, springing up as part of Patisserie46, a fine pastry shop founded by master patissier John Kraus, and how his passion for baking makes the night shift a feature of the job, rather than a burden.

There's also talk of Mark's new workshop, the Bakery Leadership Circle, which is opening applications for the Spring 2025 session on December 10!

Helpful Links

Patisserie46 / The Bread Lab

@patisserie46 on Instagram

Support the Podcast Here!

Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website

The Bakers4Bakers Community

Mark's Blog, with the Bakernomics series

Mark on Instagram

Produced and hosted by Mark Dyck

Theme song and music by Robyn Dyck

Orange Boot Human logo by Fred Reibin

When Chris DiPiazza needed a break from his IT business, he took a cooking class with a bread baker.  That class opened up a portal that changed his life and career.  From small beginnings, Chris slowly built up his wholesale business until opening Mighty Bread Co. in a small corner of a larger building in 2017.  These days, his bakery is the main player in the building, as Chris and his team go from success to success.

In this episode, Mark and Chris talk about how Chris' role has changed over the years, how they keep the team's creativity high and cohesion tight, and how he is revelling in connection with his neighbourhood and the robust food community in Philadelphia.

There is also talk about Mark's new project, the Bakery Leadership Circle, which has a new session starting in the Spring 2025.

Helpful Links

Mighty Bread Co.

@mightybreadco on Instagram

Support the Podcast Here!

Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website

The Bakers4Bakers Community

Mark's Blog, with the Bakernomics series

Mark on Instagram

Produced and hosted by Mark Dyck

Theme song and music by Robyn Dyck

Orange Boot Human logo by Fred Reibin

Erica Leahy was working in an office job when she realized she had missed her calling.  So she gave up her stock options and health plan, left the office and set off for the life of a pastry chef.  After unpaid internships, several stints baking for fine restaurants, finding her feet in a commissary kitchen and starting a family, she opened Three Daughters Baking Co. in 2018.

In this episode, Mark and Erica talk about the people in her life that have been cheering her on (and pitching in) throughout Erica's baking career, and how she's put down deep roots over the past 16 years in South Orange.

There is also talk about Mark's new project, the Bakery Leadership Circle, which has a new session starting in early 2025.

Helpful Links

Three Daughters Baking Co.

@threedaughtersbaking2018 on Instagram

Support the Podcast Here!

Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website

The Bakers4Bakers Community

Mark's Blog, with the Bakernomics series

Mark on Instagram

Produced and hosted by Mark Dyck

Theme song and music by Robyn Dyck

Orange Boot Human logo by Fred Reibin

Gillian Lundgren was lured to the Bay Area by her favourite aunt and has never left.  Through a long and varied career as a baker in San Francisco, from bakeries to pop ups, she founded Black Jet Baking Co. right down the block from where she got her start.  She's putting down deep roots and making sure the people in her neighbourhood are well fed.

In this episode, Mark and Gillian talk about both the need for and the short life span of Hustle, how Covid forced her bakery to flip from mostly wholesale to all retail, and how Gillian keeps her creative juices flowing in all aspects of her bakery. 

There is also talk about Mark's new project, the Bakery Leadership Circle, which will run again in 2025

Helpful Links

Black Jet Baking Co.

@blackjetbaker on Instagram

Support the Podcast Here!

Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website

The Bakers4Bakers Community

Mark's Blog, with the Bakernomics series

Mark on Instagram

Produced and hosted by Mark Dyck

Theme song and music by Robyn Dyck

Orange Boot Human logo by Fred Reibin

Carly Rossmeissl wants to experience everything baking has to offer.  Since graduating from baking school she's travelled from New York to Austin to Wisconsin, working with bread, cakes, desserts and even stuffed pretzels.  But her work keeps coming back to two things: solving problems and building strong, happy teams.  In this episode we talk about Carly's long and winding journey in baking, with some trade union talk and even a detour into Halloween costumes as well.

There is also talk about the Bakery Leadership Circle, which has a new session coming in 2025.

Helpful Links

Madison Sourdough

@madisonsourdough on Instagram

Support the Podcast Here!

Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website

The Bakers4Bakers Community

Mark's Blog, with the Bakernomics series

Mark on Instagram

Produced and hosted by Mark Dyck

Theme song and music by Robyn Dyck

Orange Boot Human logo by Fred Reibin

There's something special about small town bakeries.  And when your bakery is on the main street of a small town in the heart of Sonoma, California and you're baking stellar bread from a massive brick oven, well, now you really have something special.

Jessie Frost has all that and more.  A native of the Sonoma area, she baked around the Bay Area before eventually taking over Nightingale Breads.  In this fun, thoughtful episode, Mark and Jessie talk about her love of place, taking the plunge to owner her bakery during a time of turmoil and her slow, steady approach to making the bakery her own. 

There is also talk about the Bakery Leadership Circle, which has a new sessions coming up in the New Year.

Helpful Links

Nightingale Breads

@nightingalebreads on Instagram

Support the Podcast Here!

Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website

The Bakers4Bakers Community

Mark's Blog, with the Bakernomics series

Mark on Instagram

Produced and hosted by Mark Dyck

Theme song and music by Robyn Dyck

Orange Boot Human logo by Fred Reibin

When Mark Hart decided to go out on his own, he built a commercial baking space, but not for his own production baking.  Instead, he and his partner Luis Cabral started Rise Baking Lab, a teaching and event space where they can share their love of baking with professional and amatuer bakers alike.

In this episode, Mark and Luis share their vision for their new bread lab, the joys to teaching, and their growing consulting business, while discussing how there are so many ways to be a part of the baking industry without focusing on early morning production. 

There is also talk about Mark's new project, the Bakery Leadership Circle, which is offering a new session in early 2025.

Helpful Links

Rise Baking Lab

@risebakinglab on Instagram

Support the Podcast Here!

Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website

The Bakers4Bakers Community

Mark's Blog, with the Bakernomics series

Mark on Instagram

Produced and hosted by Mark Dyck

Theme song and music by Robyn Dyck

Orange Boot Human logo by Fred Reibin

Jonathan Stevens new book, The Hungry Ghost Bread Book, is a throwback to the first wave of books on artisan baking in the 1990's.  And for good reason, because Jonathan has been part of the North American bread scene from the very beginning.

In this episode, Mark and Jonathan take a trip back to the early days in Northern California, figuring it out with Alan Scott, opening an opinionated bakery in Western Mass, telling stories, singing songs and writing poetry.  And through it all, reconnecting to the power of feeding people good bread day after day.

Helpful Links

Buy Jonathan's Book via bookshop.org

Hungry Ghost Bread

@hungryghostbread on Instagram

Support the Podcast Here!

Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website

The Bakers4Bakers Community

Mark's Blog, with the Bakernomics series

Mark on Instagram

Produced and hosted by Mark Dyck

Theme song and music by Robyn Dyck

Orange Boot Human logo by Fred Reibin

Holly Showalter was a pastry chef in Virginia when the big skies of Montana came calling to her.  After several years working different jobs and settling into the local community, Holly opened Wild Oats Baking.  Now she's feeding the people and the people are fully embracing her and her food.

In this episode, Mark and Holly talk a little about tiny houses, more about hiring from within a small town, and a lot about how serving the local community means bringing all your skills to bear on the things they want to eat. 

Helpful Links

Wild Oats Baking website

@wildoatsbaking on Instagram

Support the Podcast Here!

Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website

The Bakers4Bakers Community

Mark's Blog, with the Bakernomics series

Mark on Instagram

Produced and hosted by Mark Dyck

Theme song and music by Robyn Dyck

Orange Boot Human logo by Fred Reibin