Melinda Renken
Pastry Chef/cake decorator

• http://www.TheEnchantedOven.com

I have recently opened a very small baking company, The Enchanted Oven. I bake everything from scones, muffins and quickbreads to wedding cakes and gingerbread houses. I am also able to make ice cream, though only in fairly small quantities at this time. Once I am established, I plan to move into bread production using my grandmother's cherished bread recipe.

I believe that all desserts have the ability to tell a story, ease a broken heart or help us to remember a special time or mark a wonderful celebration. There are few desserts out there that accomplish this better than special occasion cakes. This is where I have chosen to apply most of my concentration, although I do have a passion for baking in general.

Encouragement! I am just starting out and feeling somewhat overwhelmed. I know that there is a lot I don't know yet and while I love to learn, it's scary doing it alone.

I also have a nearly invisable customer base at this time. If I'm going to be able to keep this thing going for any length of time, I need to learn how to find customers. I was originally hoping to find a few contracts with small coffee shops to sell my product wholesale, but I have no clue how to go about doing this.

I also need to learn how to raise enough capital to rent a commerical space to work from. I am currently renting kitchen space by the hour when I need it and this is becoming far too costly to continue. I am the sole support of my family and there just isn't money in my personal budget to support both the family and my business. I refuse to believe this is an impossibility, however. I know there has to be a way....I just need help finding it.

I trained at and graduated from the Art Institute of Seattle's Baking and Pastry program in March of 2007. I plan to continue my education as I am able.

While in school, I knew I wanted to open my own shop eventually, but I knew I'd need some practical experience first. For six months, I worked in the bakery department of QFC full time, primarily decorating cakes. While I wasn't able to be as creative as I wanted, I was able to build fundimental skills such as speed and learn a few tricks that were not illustrated during my educational experience. It was hard work, but absolutely worthwhile.