Hello everyone!
I am brand new to Cake Central and just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Jacob, I am 26 years old and I currently work in food service. I am in the process of planning a bakery start up and could use some advice from all of you professionals 
I really look forward to being a part of this community and getting to know everyone!
- Jacob
welcome, jacob --
what kind of bakery are you planning? in what general location?
there is tons of advice by searching -- take all with a grain of salt :)
Thank you, K8memphis!
I am planning a small bakery in the downtown area of a town(Highland/Griffith, IN) about 30 minutes outside of Chicago. We will have a retail location and will specialize in desserts but will also offer fresh breads. I have been working in restaurants for years now and my mother(and business partner) has 40+ years of baking experience.
I will definitely be searching the forums for advice, and if anyone knows of preexisting posts about choosing commercial bakery equipment please let me know :)
get outa here -- you are kidding me -- that's my old stomping grounds -- i have family all over up there -- is there still a mr donut near the corner of calumet and ridge rd? oooh they had/have the best donuts --
so cool -- i think there used to be a pat-a-cake bakery there somewhere?
as far as equipment -- i've bought some things local -- some on ebay -- some from dealers --
but as far as advice, sure i remember mr donut but i can remember umpteen bakeries that have been swallowed up by time and attrition -- i can buy fondant and pearls PEARLS at my local grocery store -- i bought some really cool sparkly piping gel kinda stuff -- nice product at the grocery store --
y'know where there's a loooongstanding neighborhood bakery? across from st. margaret's on state line -- trying to think of the name -- mom worked graveyard shift at the hospital and when she got paid she'd bring home buttercrust rolls and poppyseed & apricot danish -- oh those were the days!!!
there is no money in bread, a lotta time and no roi -- you can buy dessert in every restaurant including fast food places -- i'm not being a downer -- i'm asking what makes you different and will the area sustain you -- have you had a legitimate market study done?
Haha wow, what a small world! The Mr. Donut is still there but it is now called "Munster Donut". They are good but the quality has gone way down unfortunately. Pat a Cake bakery was in Griffith but has been gone for 10+ years I believe. My mom loved that place! The only bakeries left in the area are Butterfingers and Cakes by Karen, aside from grocery stores.
It would save us a lot of money buying used equipment, but there is also more risk there. Are there certain items you wouldn't buy used or could i get just about everything used? Would I be better off going with new "cheap" equipment or used high quality equipment?
Bread wouldn't be a huge part of our business but I feel it would be something that might bring people in. Most of our sales would come from special orders, weddings, and possibly wholesale(to restaurants, cafes, etc.). We have done a lot of orders from home in the past but are growing out of the home kitchen.
I know people that have worked or know people that work in the local bakeries and everyone is using a lot of premade mixes and doughs. I know this is cheaper but the lack of quality really shows. We do everything from scratch and have some AMAZING old recipes. I think the quality is one of the main things that would set us apart from our competitors.
good answer!
y'know there are auctions too -- often online -- i haven't been a part of that for a while but if you can do some searches you might find some deals --
my commercial fridge i bought new but i have always purchased used fridges in the past and a used freezer for cakes -- -- i keep my current fridge unplugged when i'm not using it which is most of the time since i'm retired -- i purchased a beautiful castle oven that my husband would never let me hook up so he bought me a deluxe cake oven -- new but geez like ten years ago i guess -- it's fabulous! a three deck --
then i have an assortment of mixers, again one i've never hooked up, my 20 quart -- it's a heavy duty berkel saw it on ebay & drove to nashville for -- then i got a 12 qt one that i use and love also on ebay picked it up somewhere in tennessee east of here a few hours --
used equipment is fine -- peeps are usually above board about it -- i bought a used coke a cola fridge from a place on ebay that tried to flamfoozle me -- called peach city i think it was -- big operation -- haven't looked them up recently -- but they have a ton of stuff too --
i've had good luck with all my used equipment
next time we visit up there i'll come by :)
yes yes yes pat-a-cake was in griffith --
if you're making bread you need a heavy duty mixer
Thank you for all the advice! I will definitely be looking into auctions and ebay. I also see a lot of equipment on craigslist from restaurants going out of business.
I have a couple questions about bread. Would any 20-30 qt mixer work for breads or do I need a huge super tough mixer? And do I need a deck oven? I wont be making much bread at all compared to pastries and desserts so I was just planning on going with a double stack convection.
And if you don't mind me asking, did you own a bakery?
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