We recently connected with Jules and have shared our conversation below.
Jules, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.
We bake from-scratch baked goods sourcing what we can locally. And specialize in allergy friendly items. We want everyone to be able to enjoy a fresh, delicious baked good no matter what their allergies or sensitivities without compromising taste.
We hand mix every dozen scones. Our Cranberry Orange even have fresh orange zest and fresh squeezed orange juice. Our caramel and toffee are made on site. Even the vegan versions:) Let me tell you, that one took at least a few times to master.
Baking is my passion. Every item is not only made by hand but made with love. Our customers say you can taste the difference. Although most bakeries use box mixes and bucket frostings we pride ourselves on knowing every ingredient and even knowing the local organic farm/farmer, Tracy at Olden Organics, that the carrots for our very popular carrot cake come from.
We keep everything in the shop gluten free which allows so many more people the freedom to enjoy. Our entire top shelf in the bakery case is also vegan(vegan&gluten free)(including brownies, scones, cookie sandwiches, and more) along with a variety of cupcakes. All of our items can also be made vegan(except cheesecake but we’ll get there;) We are the only choice for many people with allergy concerns as we are so extraordinarily careful and completely transparent about our processes.
We also create savory items such as soups and our popular Duck Egg Breakfast Sandwich: one of our hand made savory Wiscones(cheddar, bacon, and green onion scone) made with duck eggs, slathered in our whipped garlic shallot butter, topped with local organic duck eggs, apple wood smoked bacon, and muenster cheese. The cheese and bacon are sourced from Wagner Market across the street from our shop. Making even the scones for the sandwiches with duck eggs allows many individuals with chicken egg allergies to safely enjoy.
Custom flavors are another stand out for us. We do not have a strict menu of every flavor option but love for patrons to tell us their likes, dislikes, and any allergies allowing us to create custom treats just for them. This is how many of our new flavors are born, from their inspiration. As I always tell them “We love creating new things. Life is so boring otherwise.”
Another thing that sets us apart is that I renovated the entire shop myself with help from family. My sister, Audifax, is an artist who even helped me pick out the colors, stencils, and overall look of the shop. Everything within my bakery is of special meaning to me. From the tables I made out of cutting boards, the flooring I laid, the walls I hand painted, the photos on the wall including a news article my sister, Audifax, found in the rubble of my parents house fire. It is a photo of my mom holding 3 year old me behind a counter filled with her fresh loaves of bread along with an article about her love of baking. Audifax touched it up, framed it and gave it to me for Christmas 4 years ago saying “Someday when you have your own shop you can hang it on the wall.” She truly knew something I didn’t. I never dreamed I would have my own brick and mortar and still tear up every time I tell that story. Their isn’t an inch of that shop I didn’t touch. It was truly a labor of love and people say you can feel it.
Human interactions, love, and care are our cornerstone. We intend to make everyone feel loved and welcome: staff, customers, vendors, everyone. We are going to be part of Pride Oshkosh this year at the request of multiple customers. It is so heartwarming to be asked by our customers to come to their favorite events. We had an individual last year come back with his husband after we had helped them choose jewelry to wear to pride and thank us for making a safe space where they feel so welcome. It is so sad anyone has to feel unwelcome anywhere but I love being a place where that is never an issue. A place you can be you with a smile.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I began baking at a young age along side my mom, an avid home baker. I remember taking her pie crust scraps and rolling them into my own tiny tart pans, then sprinkling them with sugar to place them in the oven along side hers. She would put flour on my face and say “Now you’re a real chef”.
I grew up in a household with my four sisters and our parents. And one bathroom(rough with 6 girls, including mom). We would grow a huge garden and make everything at home. We would fix up the house ourselves, chop wood for heat, had a small farm for eggs and meat, do all the things really, and work on neighboring farms milking, picking stones, bailing hay, babysitting, whatever was needed.
When I was in my senior year of high school I heard a lot of other people regretting their college majors. As I wasn’t sure what my future held I decided culinary would never be a waste. It’s a life skill after all and one I was always drawn too. I went to FVTC for culinary and from my internship went on to work a variety of rolls in multiple restaurants. From pasta maker to Executive Chef it was my life for over 10 years. As so many can tell you though, burn out is real. In pursuit of nights off, benefits, any resemblance of a “normal” life where you don’t serve 500 people every holiday I struck out for a “regular” job.
For about 6 years I worked an overtime job with those “perks” I had been looking for. Until I got a foot fracture that would not heal. I was forced to take off for 6 months and thought my life was over. After all, If all you have ever done is work your hardest then what is left when you are forced to stand still(or rather sit).
A month or so in I was becoming frustrated in the house I shared with my then boyfriend. One bathroom on the upper level was pretty frustrating with one leg. I decided to go stay at my parents house where I could have room to use my knee scooter and access to everything I needed on the main floor.
Luckily for me my sister, Audifax was also staying there at the time. She did reiki on me for the first time. I have to admit that I was a skeptic but that session changed my life. My fracture started healing. She also taught me to meditate. We began clean eating together and she even did chair workouts with me to get me started. My entire life and outlook changed and I began seeking out things I loved. This is where I began baking again. And boy did I love it. I not only baked regular items but began baking Gluten Free for Audi. The surprising thing was that no one could tell the difference. I actually overheard my dad talking smack about GF food on the phone one day to which I interupted and said “you do know you ate an entire pan of Gluten Free brownies don’t you?” He was shocked and took back his previous statement even purchasing a pan to bring to work and saying “I don’t know how she does it but you can’t even tell”.
From there I began doing a few farmers markets, on a knee scooter, to see if this was something to pursue. As I healed and continued on my not only baking but spiritual journey to find myself. I created Sweet Jules LLC in 2019 and started working out of a shared kitchen in Appleton even when I went back to my overtime job. This was definitely a test of my love and endurance. Going back to my old life made me realize that I wasn’t the same person I was before. I spoke with my then partner about what we wanted to change, and what wouldn’t to which I responded “I think I need to leave.” I gave him the house to start fresh on my own here in Oshkosh. I kept the business going baking through the nights in Appleton while working overtime during the days. Often only having enough time to drive home while the sun rose, change into my work cloths, splash water on my face and tell myself “You can do this”. Repeating this all week with farmers markets and/or weddings on Saturdays. Then usually pass out most of Sunday just to do it all again the next week. As time went on the business grew. One day came when looking at my schedule there was literally no time to schedule sleep anymore between all my upcoming orders, events, and my day job. It was then and there at my workstation at my old job where i decided I needed to make a choice. And honestly while it was extremely hard to break it to them it was one of the easiest decisions I ever made. Decide between the mundane day to day you know longer enjoy or follow your passion to see where it takes you? I for one will always choose adventure. I never want to wonder what if. No one has ever said on their death bed “I am so glad I didn’t live my dreams.” “I am so happy I didn’t see what I could do.” So that day I gave my two weeks and kept my dream thriving from the shared kitchen in Appleton.
A couple years later the fate of the shared kitchen hung in the balance and I was desperate to find my own place. I truly believe in putting your wants/needs out there or how will anyone know what you want including the universe. I started looking at storefronts but none were what I needed. None felt right. So this is when some magic happened yet again(the fracture and my sister being at my parents was definitely the first). A year earlier I had joined the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce on random advice from an old high school friend I happened to be making a cake for. I met with local people in business at that point. It having been a year I received an email in my inbox from the head of the BID (Downtown Oshkosh Business Improvement District). She said “it had been about a year since we met. How was I doing? Did I need anything?” To which I responded that I needed a brick and mortar of my own. She immediately said she would do some reaching out. From this an inquiry was made about an open property on Main Street to the building owner. I received an email while working the Future Neenah Farmers Market from him saying “I know you wanted to see this property but I just received an email from another shop owner that he is retiring and that space may be perfect for you as it already set up for food”. He was only back in the country for one week and had received both the email from the BID coordinator about me needing a space and from the retiring shop owner at the same time. I literally jumped in the air to celebrate. I knew then from the rush I got that this was indeed the opportunity I needed.
From there I went to see the property and knew I had a lot of work in front of me. I took over the lease and the remodel/construction began. There is not an inch of the shop I haven’t touched. From the red ceilings with 7 coats of new paint.(They ended up being fire resistant dry wall btw….not the lightest to remove and handle.), to my first flooring install. The painting, the wall stenciling(hats off to you Audi. Painting is not my forte). I am lucky enough to also have a very supportive family who chipped in where they could weekends. But through days and through many nights you could see the lights on an me working through the big front windows for months on end. And I know people could as once I was open the neighbors from the apartments across the street came to tell me they were watching. To which I responded “I know. I could feel you”. lol.
Originally when I was planning what to do in the shop through the endless renovation. I thought of having half gluten free and half regular with different bakery cases. But eventually realized that since you can’t tell the difference anyway, why was I trying to make my life harder? So, I decided to have everything in the shop GF without advertising as such. All of the items are exactly the same recipe but using a different flour. The vegan items are the same recipe as well but with vegan substitutions. We have samples available at the counter so people can try. Everything is made from scratch sourcing what we can locally. We make soups, savory scones, sweet scones(all mixed by hand per dozen), brownies, cupcakes, cookies, cookie sandwiches, cheesecake, Ultimate Cheesecake Cake(which was my invention years ago when I couldn’t decide whether I wanted a cake or cheesecake so I stacked them together;), duck egg breakfast sandwiches, fresh squeezed lemonade, and so much more. We offer all of our items(except cheesecake) in a vegan version as well. The workers at the shop say that their favorite thing is telling celiacs that there isn’t just one choice but that they can have anything. The look they get, with their eyes lighting up is absolute magic. It is so rewarding when people, including kids, come in thinking they won’t be included only to find out we are their for them. An allergen list is kept of every item in the case weekly which will list any of the major allergens in the item. We also keep backups in separate containers in case the allergy is so severe that the items can’t even be in the same case.
We do also offer regular(non gluten free) items for custom orders. They are done separate days, separate bakes, then everything is sanitized twice to prevent any cross contamination. We specialize in allergen friendly items and have been told by many that we are the only ones they trust with their and their loved ones allergies. Their are 3 celiacs on staff and some customers who use Gluten Testers on all of their food. We were told all of our items have come back Gluten Free:)
Everything we make is from scratch. The scones are hand mixed by the dozen, Caramel and toffee made on site. Even the cake batter is mixed by hand in the final stages. All small batch with love. We work with the local co-op to get in local, organic eggs and work with a local organic farm to get in local, organic veggies for our baked goods and soups. Their is not one cake mix, bucket of frosting, or shortcut here. To get the lavender flavor in our Lavender Lemon with Raspberry Cupcakes I take organic lavender buds and steep them in milk to get the natural lavender flavor infused. We then use that milk in our cake and add a lemon buttercream made with fresh squeezed lemons finished with organic raspberry preserves.
For custom orders and wedding tastings we just need your likes, dislikes, and any allergies to create fun new flavors for you. Creating is one of my favorite things along with cake decorating. My job is so hard, just fantasizing about desserts all day(sarcasm of course). I actually made a fellow business owner jump one day because i gasped loudly out of nowhere. She jumped with a start exclaiming “What?” and looking towards the large front windows frantically expecting a car to be barreling through. I responded “I just had a really good idea for a cheesecake!” She said, “Well you know you’re in the right profession when you gasp like a psycho when you get a cheesecake idea.” I am so excited to get to live my dream every day. It is still so surreal.
We not only have a large array of items in the shop including our bakery case and freezer section with by the slice Cheesecake and Ultimate Cheesecake Cakes and soups but we do custom orders, weddings, and events. We even deliver and set up weddings and events for you providing the stands and creating a beautiful display.
Being environmentally friendly is also very important to us. Our cupcake boxes and takeout bags are recycled/recyclable, our clam-shells are made of plant fiber, our garbage bags are biodegradable, and to go silverware is made of cornstarch. We spend more to get products that won’t hurt the earth and sleep with a clear conscience.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
I believe our reputation was built on sincere love of what I do, for the people I encounter and integrity in our products. When you are truly passionate about what you do that energy, that excitement is contagious. People, I believe, genuinely want to support those around them who they believe in and who believe in what they do. I started small doing something I loved never really intending to own a business. It all started with passion and through pouring my love through everything I do & simply grew. When you make someone a cake for a birthday, wedding, celebration of life, anything and take the time to truly listen to them, care with them, create a bond they see that. People can see when you go above and beyond. They become your friends and family, your community. I always say I finally have the little 50s village I always wanted where I can chat with the mailman, wave to my shop neighbors, laugh with customers and co-workers(employees),
I also found out I can also cater to those with allergies so that someone who (as an example) is allergic to gluten, dairy, and peanuts can have a chocolate cake with chocolate ganache buttercream and salted caramel all made from scratch serve it at their party and have no one know it is anything but delicious. It is magical to be able to help people enjoy things they never thought possible.
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
The best source of new clients for us is word of mouth and doing events. If you do good work you get repeat and loyal customers. They in turn tell other people or share your products with others. Making sure to include business cards for weddings and events, labeling your items in a way that is cute to share in posts, and being personable at events if important. Not only will the people at events share their experience but being personable with the coordinators or people running venues definitely helps as well. Basically loving people and making connections in priceless.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sweetjulesbakes.com
- Instagram: @sweetjulesbakes
- Facebook: @Sweet Jules
