We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Melvin Nelson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Melvin, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How has Covid changed your business model?
When COVID- 19 came around it was game changing for the bakehouse. Business was growing crazy. Of course with ever boom you may evidentially slow down. This was where the real work came in for me being a small business owner. I had to really dig into my business and keep the momentum I built going. Between building my social media platforms more and changing packaging. The overall experience from the first message until you receive our product is something we constantly focus on..
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My story starts in Port Arthur, Texas and currently I reside in Pearland, Texas, My family is filled with baker, so I guess I was born for this! Growing up I would always like to bake and try baking things out the norm and it just kind of stuck. After college i would cook and bake for my friends and they started encouraging me to sell. Now we are 4 years and going strong with Lil Melvin’s Bakehouse. This journey has truly been amazing on every level.
While staying committed to the vision can sometimes becoming challenging. I have found when I stayed with my core values i created, business flows easier. People continue to support bakehouse for the experience and the homemade delicious products. I always like to compare what I do to like your grandmothers baking. Everything is prepared homemade all products are real. I crack every egg and measure all the flour. i truly put love in what I do here at Lil Melvin’s Bakehouse. When we even get to the packaging I opted for a simple look as well. I want your to stay in the experience. All items come personalized. Think of you grandma saying “hey Monica i made this for you baby”. Thats love i want to share at Lil Melvin’s Bakehouse we make sure we tell you we love you by personalizing all products we sell.
Taking this business on and sharing my baking with world was so hard, you open yourself up for allot. But I take it all in and realized the positive side. I started this as a young black male baker. Just showing that you can do something outside of social norms and be successful, why not hold that with pride! I Always talk myself up daily and say “I did it” “I’m doing it”. Believing in yourself is so important no matter what.
How did you build your audience on social media?
Social media can be so tricky and you constantly have to stay on top of it. I gave Lil Melvin’s Bakehouse to the world on social media and it has been great. But it’s literally another job to stay relevant in that world. You constantly have to check your engagement and watch how your profile works (e.g. time people engage, high traffic, etc) Most people think oh i have 1k followers so people are seeing me. That’s really not the case just because they follow don’t mean they engage, with all the changing algorithms staying constant and consistent is a plus. Making and editing commercial really helped me in the beginning. When i started it was before the TikTok boom, so even in 4 years time i had to change how i promote and make commercials.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Being loyal to the brand you created is the best thing you can do. Of course brands evolve over time and that’s for anybody. I had so much self doubt when I first started. I kept sayin who wants a pound cake? Nothing fancy about it, i do not have characters or special birthday designs. But i realize its a market out there for me. And as the business grew i adding Tea Cakes and cookies to the menu i was able to grow my current customers and capture a new buying group.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: instagram.com/lilbakehouse
- Facebook: facebook.com/melvinnelson