We were lucky to catch up with Shaelynn Glieden recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Shaelynn thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Often outsiders look at a successful business and think it became a success overnight. Even media and especially movies love to gloss over nitty, gritty details that went into that middle phase of your business – after you started but before you got to where you are today. In our experience, overnight success is usually the result of years of hard work laying the foundation for success, but unfortunately, it’s exactly this part of the story that most of the media ignores. Can you talk to us about your scaling up story – what are some of the nitty, gritty details folks should know about?

Starting a business is never easy. There’s so much that goes into it.

My business started 6 years ago when I was 15 from a small hobby. I loved baking with my mom and grandmas growing up and I’ve always had an interest in decorating cakes and how it was done. I had many people encourage me to start a business with the skills I already had and from there was my first paying customer. She was a family friend who saw my potential before I did. She was the beginning of my journey.

After posting my first official order on social media I had many family and friends ordering cakes for birthdays, graduations and just for fun. Eventually, it was strangers reaching out and wanting to place orders. That’s when I realized my business was beginning to grow.

I had my local newspaper reach out wanting to feature me and my new business on the front page of the paper sharing my story. That definitely brought more attention to me and curiosity to the people in my town.

While just starting up this new business, I was still in school and working a job. I could only take a few orders a month to maintain everything and make time for friends. Roughly one year in, I decided It would be best for me to pause baking for a while and focus on finishing school, working and saving money.

After some time had passed, about two years, I had moved out and came home from a summer camp where we talked about what we want our futures to look like and I made the choice to start my business back up. I rebranded everything, made a menu of all the things I offered and posted on socials saying I’m back in business and ready to bake again. Little did I know that everyone was so excited for me to be back. I was booked out month after month. I was excited to see my business thriving and people sharing my posts and telling their friends about me.

My following on social media grew drastically and I had many new opportunities to bring my business into my community.
I was asked to be a vendor at a FFA event and was able to sell lots of different dessert items. I had many brides starting to reach out asking about wedding cakes. My high school reached out and ordered 300 cupcakes for their prom. Not only were amazing opportunities being presented to me, but so many more customers were being booked.

Another two years went by and I decided to move to a new town closer to the cities with my family. I was nervous to move my business to a new area because my following and clientele was firm in my hometown. I started sharing my business page in some local facebook groups in my new town and it blew up! People freaked out with excitement on the post and I had many messages asking about my availability. I was thrilled and beyond grateful for the positive engagement it received.

I had more confidence and more love for baking than I ever did after moving and see how supportive this new community was. I hit 1k on Facebook and had larger businesses starting to order custom logo cookies from me. I also gained new friends in the business world and got to really connect and understand what it means and takes to run a business successfully.

Now here we are today, baking full-time, offering classes and new items, a huge following of people who are so kind and supportive, a full calendar of weddings booked and a heart that has so many more dreams and passions that will come true. It takes a lot of time to get where you want to be. Success doesn’t just happen in a couple days, It takes time, months and years along with patience and hard work. Still going even when you want to quit will make for a greater outcome. Don’t just let your dreams be dreams, pursue them.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Hey! My name is Shaelynn and I’m the Head Baker and Decorator at Glieden’s Home Baked Goods. I’ve been baking ever since I was little with my mom and grandma, helping with everything from cookies to cakes and cupcakes and pitching in wherever I could in the kitchen. My favorite part has always been the decorating, of course I’ve always had a creative, artistic mind, which made designing and finishing desserts so much fun.

I started my business when I was 15 years old. Baking began as a childhood hobby that felt natural and joyful, and my mom began posting pictures of my creations on Facebook for friends and family to see that’s where it all started. A close friend reached out after seeing a cake I made for a family Christmas party with a small fondant nativity set; she was impressed by my skills and asked me to make cakes for her children’s birthdays. That was my first official customer. I knew then I had a real passion and heart for this and wanted to take the next step and get my cottage food license. In the summer of 2020 I was officially a registered cottage food producer with SG’s Sweet Treats!!

I could only take a few orders a month to maintain school and work. Roughly one year in, I decided It would be best for me to pause baking for a while and focus on finishing school, working and saving money.

After some time had passed, about two years, I had moved out and made the choice to start my business back up. I rebranded to my now business (Glieden’s Home Baked Goods) I posted on social media saying I’m back in business and ready to bake again. Little did I know that everyone was so excited for me to be back. I was booked out month after month and I was excited to see my business thriving and growing.

I do a little bit of everything but I mostly specialize in cake decorating, weddings, and teaching/classes. It’s truly an honor to provide baked goods that are filled with love to my customers! The excitement people share when they receive their orders just as they envisioned is my favorite. It brings me joy to know I can create the perfect treat for them!

I’m excited to now be offering cake decorating classes where you learn how to decorate start to finish! I’ve always had a passion for teaching others and so many comments suggesting that I should host classes/workshops! So by popular demand and a dream of mine, Its finally happening!

I’m very proud of how far I have come in the business world. 6 years ago, I would have never thought I would be baking full-time with orders booked months out, 15+ weddings in my calendar, decorating classes lined up and the support I have from my community, family and friends.

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

I think my most effective strategy for growing clientele is having well structured social media pages that draw in people and show what I’m selling and offering.
I believe being real, honest, and friendly with my customers is also important to have them wanting to order again and refer you to others.
Also when I can I like to network my business when opportunities arise, at work, in the grocery store, and in social media groups when people are looking for baked goods!

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I started my business in my hometown and it was very successful with repeat customers and an awesome supportive community. After a few years, I decided to move to a new town closer to the cities. I was making big life changes with my business and personal life that were exciting but also nerve-racking. I didn’t know what to expect with this new area and new community. I started posting my business in local networking groups and to my surprise it blew up with positive engagment. My business is bigger than it has ever been since moving and Ive had so many amazing opportunities since!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.gliedenshomebakedgoods.com
• Instagram: Gliedenshomebakedgoods
• Facebook: Gliedenshomebakedgoods