BakeMark's Bakin N Rockin - November 2011 - (Page 6)

A Taste of Denmark Makes its Mark One of the more interesting retail bakery businesses in the country can be found in Oakland, CA, where A Taste of Denmark operates. For 82 years, the bakery (which had a different name under previous ownership) had served the Oakland community, but then fell upon hard times. In 2010, the owners of the building and three former employees gathered around a small table in the vacant bakery to decide their fate. Among those people at the table, they boasted more than 100 years of bakery experience. And they knew this would serve them well as they decided to open a bakery under a new name and launch a fresh start. Cathy Caulkett, one of the owner/shareholders of A Taste of Denmark and previously the front store manager at the bakery, explains why they decided to form an owner-employee cooperative, which would consist of several levels of shares including a 1% share for each of eight employees. Mark Davis, another owner/shareholder, had been the head decorator and foreman at the bakery for many years. Rigo Luna, another owner/shareholder, had been the mixer and decorator. Sukhee Yoo and Kevin Yoo are also owner/ shareholders. “As an owner-employee coop, we can make better choices of how we spend our money,” Caulkett points out. “Everything is very functional.” This type of individual responsibility serves them well. They decided to keep some of the products that had been popular at the longtime bakery, but then added a large variety of new items that the new owners recognized fit better with the demands of today’s bakery shoppers. Items like cake pops, whoopie pies, individual cake, ganache cups, and fruit tarts were added to the menu to appeal to customers who wanted individual-sized treats. The bakery continues to make large cakes, as they did before, but introduced items that appeal to smaller households. The bakery also has kept in step with foodservice demand by offering breakfast and lunch sandwiches, along with catering trays. The 10,000-square-foot features an L-shaped counter that showcases an impressive array of cakes and pastries. “It’s a very good size bakery,” Caulkett says. “We’re doing quite well.” With the needs of today’s consumers and loyal local customers in mind, A Taste of Denmark offers a wide array of traditional and non-traditional bakery products. Working with BakeMark as their ingredient supplier has proved very beneficial to A Taste of Denmark. “They are very good to work with,” Caulkett says. “They go the extra nine yards to take care of us.” Unlike others, they continue to make a “true” Danish with real butter and other topquality ingredients, Caulkett emphasizes. They also put fresh-made fruit toppings on their Danish. They also use only pure almond paste for almond fillings. The bakery bakes rolls and bread fresh daily. Certain breads are baked on certain days of the week. During the holidays they bake bread more often. If customers need a specific type of bread or roll on a certain day, they can call or email to check on availability. A Taste of Denmark is well known for Danish Butter cookies, as well. They make hundreds of dozens for the holidays and pack them in many types of seasonal packages. The bakery also makes standard large cookies for everyday customers: chocolate chip, macadamia white chocolate, oatmeal raisin, fruit bars, and their famous cashew curls. Cakes represent a large portion of their business, and A Taste of Denmark touts it vast experience and wealth of knowledge in producing wonderful tasting cakes. Their decorators have made thousands of wedding cakes over the last four decades.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of BakeMark's Bakin N Rockin - November 2011

BakeMark's Bakin N Rockin - November 2011