Eric & Denise Steilberger with Fudge De Fûge
Eric & Denise Steilberger of Ocala, FL sell their homemade fudge all year long and share how the lessons they learned from running a cafe in Alaska helped them build a successful cottage food business
Back To Basics with Lora Friemel
Lora Friemel of Scranton, AR shares how she sells homemade jams, jellies, and other canned goods as a way to support her lifelong dream of running a sustainable homestead for her family
Makin’ Friends, Sellin’ Food, Havin’ Fun with Connie & Rick Martin
Connie & Rick Martin of Charleston, WV share how they built a successful business by discovering a very unique product, accruing 15 wholesale accounts, and constantly networking and asking for help.
Mixing It Up with Cassie Menchhofer
Cassie Menchhofer of Celina, OH shares how she took her business to the next level by building an FDA-approved manufacturing facility to sell her dried soup, baking, and spice mixes across the country.
How To Build A Food Business (And Life) That You Love with Sari Kimbell – Part 2
Sari Kimbell of Fort Collins, CO shares tons of advice about growing a food business, including pricing, choosing products, branding, selling wholesale, scaling up, find a commissary kitchen, and more.
When Demand Exceeds Supply with Jen Holmer El-Azzi & Danny El-Azzi
Jen & Danny from Austin, TX sell sourdough crackers and share how they grew their business to 50+ wholesale accounts by leveraging farmers markets, a unique product, and a strong brand.
2021 Recap: A Record Year for the Cottage Food Industry
WOW… what a year it has been for our growing cottage food industry!
As I wrote about last year, the pandemic really highlighted the need for people to be able to sell their homemade food.
And in 2021, states responded in a BIG way! This year, more states improved their laws for selling homemade food than in any other year in history.
The Resilient Baker with Justina Rucinski
Justina Rucinski from Burlington, IA shares how she resurrected her custom cookie business after being sexually assaulted by a supposed client, and how her experience impacted the cottage food industry.
Chocolates That Almost Sell Themselves with Anne Reist
Anne Reist of Holladay, UT sells eyepopping hand-painted couverture chocolates and shares how she organically grew her business to the point of building a commercial kitchen into her home.
Blending Coffee & Business with Jim & Crystal Whitmarsh
Jim & Crystal Whitmarsh of Kasson, MN share how they grew their small-batch roasted coffee business from home to a commercial storefront by leveraging creative collaborations with other businesses.
Crushing It With Caramel Corn with Kathy Sing
Kathy Sing from Visalia, CA shares how she sold almost $50k of homemade caramel corn, toffee, and other treats in a single year by wholesaling through retail stores.
2020 Cottage Food Industry Recap
2020 was not just a year full of changes for the nation and world.
It was also a year which changed the cottage food industry… sometimes for the worse, but mostly for the better.
There were a number of important storylines this year, and surprisingly, many of them were not pandemic-related.
In this year-end recap, I’ll give my take on the major events of 2020 that related to the cottage food industry.
How To Start An Eco-Friendly & Socially Responsible Cookie Business with Barry Sherman
Barry Sherman and his life partner Scott, from Tampa Bay, FL, run an eco-friendly, socially-conscious, high-end cookie business by using compostable packaging and giving a portion of sales to charity.
Wholesale Strategies That Work with Sonia Chang
Sonia Chang from Pasadena, CA, who has sold her healthy granola in over two dozen stores and has also operated a popular cupcakery, shares marketing strategies that she’s used to grow her businesses.
Three Tips to Create Labels for Canned Goods that Sell
Tips from the free Labeling Guide & Toolkit for Creating Canned Food Products that Sell, with ideas to communicate the quality of what’s inside your jars.
Starting A Cottage Food Operation – Labeling
Nearly all states require a label on cottage food products, and there are many things to consider when creating labels for your home food business.