09/01/2026
When to pull the trigger on equipment like a commercial mixer or a deck oven?
To be totally honest, I’m probably not the best example for traditional business scaling.
I built this bakery through a lot of prayer, going with my gut, and waiting for peace. When we started, we didn’t have extra cash to throw around, and honestly, we didn’t need it because my production was tiny.
As demand grew, I forced myself to learn how to bake without the big gear. It didn’t feel overwhelming, until it suddenly did.
I didn’t buy a big mixer until my wrists and forearms literally started cramping. I didn’t invest in a real bread oven until I was staring down 18 hour bake days, and the shifting, inconsistent loaves were driving me crazy.
I also left out all the small stuff under $100 like sheet pans, Cambros, and bowls.
My point in sharing this isn’t to present a textbook business plan. It’s to show that you don’t need a massive injection of capital to start. You can grow organically, let your body and your schedule tell you when you’ve hit a wall, and only invest big when the need is screaming at you. Waiting year and a half to make my first major equipment purchase gave me the time to build a solid foundation.
Being able to reinvest in this business and watch it grow is the biggest blessing. If you’re starting small today, take a deep breath, you don’t need all the gear to begin.
What is your investment strategy and what piece of equipment felt like the gamechanger? Was it a mixer or was it the oven?
