We were lucky to catch up with Matthew Estep recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Matthew, thanks for joining us today. What’s the best or worst investment you’ve made?

Other than the obvious answers of ovens, mixers, and other equipment that we could not live without: the best investment I made as a small business owner was hiring employees who have helped make this company what it is and share the same passion as I do for food and desserts. I was the sole baker for roughly 2 years. Long nights would not even describe the workload…Night and day did not really exist as it felt like I was never away from the kitchen. Although, I loved what I did, there was no doubt that it was not easy. It was not until another employee at the East Market (Kylie Redman) came around. She and I began to talk about my business and how I had started. She kept bothering me about letting her help me. For a while, I pushed away the help. Eventually, I let her write labels for cheesecakes. The more time we spent together, the more she watched from the sidelines. In time, she had become the middle-men for me and my wholesale accounts. When she began to help me full-time, we were spending every waking second together. We had no idea that her simple front of house/business assistant position would grow into a full-blown co-operator role. As our business grew at a rapid rate, she adapted and took on more and more responsibility. Our bond has grown so strong that there is not a need for words, as we are able to work side-by-side as one well-oiled machine. Kylie is now my right hand woman. She produces about half of the product that we put out as a company. We are now able to lead by example, and have grown our staff. While we are still small, we work together as a close-knit family unit that has the same values as us. Now our staff has grown into small group who all have their own specializations, but are willing to jump in and help wherever is needed.

Matthew, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I had been a part of the Columbus restaurant industry for about 20 years. My passion for food and desserts had never stopped growing. An opportunity arose to specialize in desserts and I took it. I used my kitchen knowledge to create a cheesecake that was different from the rest. We are now proud to bring Columbus fresh desserts on a daily basis and excited for new additions in the near future.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

As many people know, you have to be resilient as a business owner. Without it, The Bearded Baker would cease to exist. There were countless sleepless nights spent baking in restaurant kitchens. If there was sleep to be had, it was often in my car while I waited for cheesecakes to finish baking. Even with some help, we were still in (the kitchen) far too early and had to stay far too late to make our dreams a reality. Physical and mental toughness were and continue to be trying. Perseverance and resiliency have become the backbone of our brand.

How’d you meet your business partner?

To further expand on an investment, comes the story of meeting my business partner. As mentioned before, I really did not want the help. I was and still am very particular about how I want things done. Taking on help from another meant that I had to “let go.” As hard as it was to do, I enjoyed the company. Kylie spent what little free-time that she had from her own 2 jobs with me. She went out of her way to help with grocery runs, keeping me fed, making conversation, responding to emails, etc. Whatever she could do to help, she did until it grew into more than just helping and more than just a friendship. As our relationship started to grow, so did our business. The more my trust grew in her, the more responsibilities she took on with the company. Now I couldn’t live without her professionally or personally.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.thebeardedbakerllc.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebeardedbakerllc/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thebeardedbakerllc

Image Credits

Alec Broderick
Kylie Redman