We were lucky to catch up with Sadie Stutzman recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Sadie, thanks for joining us today. What do you think it takes to be successful?

My FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) advisor in college redefined success for me; he always said that success is if you make the people around you, and yourself, better. That has been such a rewarding perspective shift for me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still driven and lured into the typical definition of “success”, and do strive for that. But I find comfort in knowing that version of “success” isn’t the end all be all.

My favorite athlete of all time, Rafael Nadal, said “The glory is being happy. The glory is not winning here or winning there. The glory is enjoying practicing, enjoy every day, enjoying to work hard, trying to be a better player than before.” I find that is a good summary for the day to day successes. If I can enjoy my work, improve on myself and others daily, despite the (inevitable) obstacles of the day, I should be happy with that. To me, that will build a fulfilling & sustainable career. Just look at Rafa…he’s been winning grand slams since 2005!

Sadie, 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?

While I’ve always loved baking (and eating), I am relatively new to the food industry. Full Stop. is approaching it’s third year anniversary and as a result, I am rounding out my third year in the industry. I was in grad school for mechanical engineering when I started the bakery (2020) and pivoted completely out of engineering earlier this year (2023).

My “full stop” is the origin story of Full Stop.. A “full stop” can look like a lot of things, but for me, at that time, it was taking some time to assess myself. Was I becoming the person I want to become? Was I acting in a way that reflected what I said my priorities were? Was I trending in the right direction on a personal level (meaning was I “successful” as I’ve defined it above?). In short, my answer to all of these things was, “no”. And that is a wild feeling. To realize that you don’t want to be the person you are becoming…yikes. So I slammed on the brakes (see the skid marks behind the bike on our logo??) and I pivoted. I wanted to refocus my energy and put my priority on people. And NOTHING (in my opinion), brings people together and more happiness than food.

We specialize in sourdough crackers! First and foremost, these crackers are great! I say that strongly, not in a cocky way, but in a confident way. Their flavor will elevate any snack, board, or party and (okay, now I might be coming across as biased) tend to be the highlight! Secondly, because they are all sourdough based you now have some extra health benefits that come into play. The sourdough feeds the good bacteria in our guts that leads to robust digestion system and a happier gut biome. The fermentation process breaks down some of the gluten, making it easter to digest. Also, sourdough is a natural leavening agent…which gives our crackers a unique and satisfying texture!

The brand, and the sourdough crackers, really are a reminder that we all need to fully stop every now and then. There is no right way to “full stop’ and it might be different every time, but necessary nonetheless. Now, my “full stop”s might be a weekend off, a cup of tea, a deep breath at a red light, or (and it really is mainly this one…) simply eating sourdough crackers. So grab a bag, hit the trails, host a movie night, or read a book and take a “full stop” with me.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

When I said above that I wanted to “prioritize people”, that also includes the people I get to work with at Full Stop.. I am all too aware that without the WHOLE team, we would not be where we are and we wouldn’t grow as a company. I value everyone that has had a hand in growing Full Stop. and I do think that comes across in my actions, how I communicate to them, and the overall morale of the team. I strive to never take anyone on the team for granted. When you started with a team of one, you really realize how impactful and how much value each person adds. How silly would it be if I forgot that!!

I think the most important thing to team success is clear and frequent communication. The lines of communication have to be open and they have to go both ways. As a first time small business owner, I am in uncharted territory most of the time. I’m going to mess up or respond wrong to a situation and I have to be able to hear & act on feedback from that. As a leader, I set the tone and expectations in the environment. If my communication comes across as respectful, clear, & understanding…I’ll likely get the same in return.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

SAMPLES. The more people that get to try our sourdough crackers the better! The best way to gain customer trust, especially as an emerging brand, it to let them in on the secret with a lil’ sample. As a consumer, I was always such a sucker for samples, especially if it was a product that wasn’t on my standard grocery list. So I’ve flipped the script and now offer samples, always!!

Contact Info:

• Website: fullstopbakerey.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fullstop.bakery/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FullStop.Bakery
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sadie-stutzman-667b7374/