Rise Up! The Baker Podcast with Mark Dyck

Mark first met Peter Claybaker in San Francisco when Peter was buying the deck oven for his brand new bakery. 10 years later, Marquette Baking Company continues to serve this small college town on the shores of Lake Superior, although the business has changed significantly in the last year. In this episode, Peter explains how he got into baking and how he built Marquette Baking Company. They also discuss how several business challenges caused big changes at the bakery in 2018 and what the...

Suzanne Gessler was a social worker and city planner. In a way, she still is. As owner and baker at Penny Loaf in Winnipeg Manitoba, Suzanne is making sure her bakery plays a key role in her neighbourhood's vitality. In this episode, Mark and Suzanne talk about changing careers to open a bakery, how she built a little gem in the Corydon neighbourhood of Winnipeg and how she built the massive wood fired brick oven that bakes all the bread. Some links: The Penny Loaf Bakery...

Jessica Carpinone has a passion for bread, for her team and for equity. And as co-owner of the Ottawa bakery Bread By Us, she's able to work in all her passions every day. In this episode, Mark and Jessica talk about the impact of the recent tornado that hit the Ottawa area, how Bread By Us is there for the community regardless of income or other circumstances, and the challenges faced by the modern food service employee. Articles mentioned in this episode: The True Price of Bread, by...

Nicole Davis never planned to take over the family farm. But the call of the country was too strong, so strong in fact that she also bought the stone mill next door. As the owner of Daybreak Mill, Nicole is hard at work building connections with bakers of all sizes and transforming a staple product into a cool consumer brand. In this episode, Mark and Nicole talk about how she made her way back to the farm after high school, how she's bringing a mill with a lot of history into the 21st...

Bakery owners are on a mission. We want to make the best baked goods we can and both feed and nourish our community. We want a happy team, happy customers and happy farmers and millers too. But is there room in all this happiness for profit? In this episode, Mark shares his thoughts on the book Profit First by Mike Michalowicz, which was recommended by Rebecca Channer, founder of the amazing ProsperCity. The book has changed the way he thinks about money in general and profits in...

After years and years of dreaming and planning to open her own bakery, Corina Gaffney is the proud owner of Great Lakes Baking Company in Hudson Ohio. The bakery has been around for over 20 years and now Corina and her team are focused taking the bakery to whole new level of taste and happiness. In this episode, Mark and Corina sit down on her patio to talk about her decision to purchase an existing bakery and what it takes for the new owner and the staff to gel into an excellent team. We...

Giacomo Salata took the traditional Italian path to being a pastry chef, including deciding on his path in life at age 13. But his career so far has been anything but traditional, taking him from his hometown of Padua to England, Saskatchewan and Ottawa, Ontario. In this episode, Mark learns more about how one becomes a pastry chef in Italy, what it's like to work at a major fusion restaurant in London and how Giacomo and his partner Martina made their way to Canada. Some links: Stubbe...

Depending on how you count, Polestar Hearth has been around for 18 months or 10 years. That's because 18 months ago, Jesse Merrill moved his bakery from his backyard to a gorgeous retail space in Guelph Ontario. This little gem is now a hub for bread lovers from all over town. In this episode, recorded on site at Polestar Hearth, Mark and Jesse discuss his move from a home business to a retail bakery, how he's built his team and the strong emotional connection between his customers and...

Mark and Cindy are back from a massive road trip through Ontario and into the Midwest USA, checking out the amazing trees and lakes and visiting as many bakeries as humanly possible. In this two-part episode, Mark shares his thoughts on the trip, with an emphasis on the wide variety of community bakeries they saw throughout Ontario. Then, Mark and Arlo Brandl from Tecumseh, Michigan have an in-person chat about Arlo's new bakery and his recent success in becoming the BBGA's seventh...

Michael Sellers left a successful business career to open his solo bread bakery in Peekskill New York. And it truly is a solo operation, from baking to packaging and delivery to all over Westchester County. In this episode, Mark and Michael talk about the ins and outs of running a subscription bread operation, the challenges of working in a shared space and how the need to connect with customers can lead to extremely long work days. Michael also turns the tables and gets Mark talking about...

Don Guerra is not simply an awesome bread baker. He’s also a leader in the Community Supported Bakery movement and is at the forefront of the local grain movement in Tucson, Arizona. In this episode, Mark and Don have a lively discussion about Don’s life in baking, including a significant detour right in the middle, and how his local community supported his reboot, first in his garage and then with his retail bakery. They also marvel at the connections bakers make with each other all...

Melina Kelson is a baker, teacher and wood fired oven officianado. She is also long serving board member of the Bread Baker’s Guild of America. In this episode, Mark and Melina discuss her path to becoming a renowned baking instructor, what the Guild board does on a non-WheatStalk year, her bootleg baking project and her new role as Operations Manager at Princi Kitchens in Chicago. Some links: Bootleg Batard Princi Kitchen Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website Mark on...

Martin Philip spent time as a musician and a financier before turning his attention to baking and many, many people are glad that he did. Martin is the Head Baker at King Arthur Flour in Vermont and author of the amazing memoir and bread book Breaking Bread: A Baker's Journey Home in 75 Recipes. In this episode, Mark and Martin talk about Martin's journey in baking, how he convinced Jeffrey Hamelman to take him on at King Arthur and what it was like to write his book. But mainly they...

Randy George is a very generous baker and teacher and not just in and around the bakery he founded in Middlesex, Vermont, Red Hen Baking Company. He's also mentored a great many bakers and bakery owners as an active member of the Bread Baker's Guild e-group. In this episode, Mark and Randy talk about his start in baking, how Red Hen was founded, what it's like running a wholesale bakery and how Randy puts his employees front and centre in his operation. Some links: Red Hen Baking...

(This version gets Solveig's and Mark's voices back in sync. So sorry for the mix up!) Solveig Tofte is a fun loving, exceptionally friendly baker with an international reputation. Not only does she own and operate the amazing Sun Street Breads in Minneapolis, Minnesota but she also travels the world teaching baking and connecting with other bakers. In this episode, Mark and Solveig talk about her experience with Team USA at the Coupe de Monde, starting Sun Street Breads and forming the...

Solveig Tofte is a fun loving, exceptionally friendly baker with an international reputation. Not only does she own and operate the amazing Sun Street Breads in Minneapolis, Minnesota but she also travels the world teaching baking and connecting with other bakers. In this episode, Mark and Solveig talk about her experience with Team USA at the Coupe de Monde, starting Sun Street Breads and forming the best named group ever - the Intergalactic Bakers Federation. Some links: Sun Street...

Annie Moss is co-owner of Seastar Bakery in Portland, Oregon and she isn't afraid of working with others to make the place of her dreams. She partnered up with three friends to build not just a bakery, but a cafe and pizza joint, all sharing the same space and same oven. The result is a unique neighbourhood place beloved by her regulars. In this episode, Mark and Annie talk about Annie's start in baking, how her time at New York's Greenmarket formed some of her ideas about local food and...

Amy Halloran is a writer, teacher and activist who is digging deep into how local food economies can revitalize communities. And she's working hard to improve the situation in her home town of Troy, New York. Amy is the author of The New Bread Basket, which described the re-emergence of the local grain movement throughout the US - a movement which has continued to grow and build momentum. In this episode, Mark and Amy talk about how she got into writing and into bread, and the intricate...

So what style of baking do you do? What does that even mean? In this episode, Mark tries to unpack the answer to the question "What style of bread do you bake", the joys of baking during a heat wave and shares feedback on the Volker Baumann episode - from Volker. Plus, it's listener email time! Some links: Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website Mark on Instagram Credits: Produced and hosted by Mark Dyck Theme song and music by Robyn Dyck Orange Boot Human logo by Fred Reibin

Volker Baumann has helped hundreds and hundreds of bakers during his long career as a baker, bakery owner and renowned baking instructor. In this episode, Mark and Volker renew their friendship as Mark learns the bigger story of Volker's life in baking, from apprenticing in Germany to owning a bakery in Calgary, Alberta to his 25 year career as a Baking and Pastry instructor at SAIT. Retirement hasn't slowed Volker down one bit! Some links: Southern Alberta Institute of Technology...