wbjournal.com | May 15, 2023 | Worcester Business Journal 11
S M A L L B U S I N E S S F O C U S
agreed to go along for the discovery. Bak-
ing, specifically bread, is an exploration.
ere are recipes, a litany of them. ere
are cookbooks and YouTube videos, but
every loaf is different. Every batch of
flour holds something new. Every starter
and levain is not equal. Each time you
turn your dough or crank your oven,
something changes. e process evolves.
As Brown's bread grew in demand, his
life changed, and he needed a change.
He needed some help.
Brown was stuck between turning his
home into a full-time business or taking
out loans to push the project to the next
step to open a business in a commercial
space. He started working with Robert
Del Mastro, senior business advisor for
MSBDC in Worcester. He changed from
a sole proprietor to an corporation and
began exploring how to get the business
out of his house.
"Most people want to make the tran-
sition out of their house," Del Mastro
said. "Many don't make the transition
because you go from low cost to now
taking on rent and a space, and in
Worcester rent is outrageously high,
especially in a busy area."
Del Mastro has worked with clients
as they try to make this big jump and
not only is rent tough, but so is the build
out. Building a bakery means getting in
restaurant-grade equipment and meeting
Continued on next page
Brown started making
bread as a hobby
and grew his home
business in popu-
larity throughout the
COVID-19 pandemic.
