(17:20) What has been the secret to your success so far?

Knowing myself, knowing my capabilities, and staying in my line. Laser focus—I know what I can do. If the market changes or hops on trends, I stick to what I do well and what my customers want. I would also say that I do more listening than talking.

Plenty of entrepreneurs will tell you that when any opportunity comes along, you should say yes. What I see now is that, no, it doesn’t always work for you. When you leave the gates as an entrepreneur, you want to make money doing anything you can. I would say to new entrepreneurs that “maybe” is often as good an answer as yes—focus on your pricing, your strengths, and your value. Be calm and deliberate.

When you say yes to one thing, you are saying no to everything else. That distraction might give you a little bump in revenue but might be a long-term strategic mistake.

(22:15) Some of the best lessons come from mistakes. Do you have any you could share with our audience?

Where do I start? Forecasting is difficult—sales, supplies, events, your time, everything. You forget how long it takes to accomplish certain tasks, especially as a parent.

Secondly, you need to make time for yourself. Not just the big things, but simple life tasks like reading, taking care of your aging parents, and meditating. You need to find that balance and maintain it.

“If the company's leadership is tired, stressed out, or distracted, the business won’t thrive.”

That’s right—if you make a self-care plan, you’re not reacting to stress; you’re responding. Building your personal toolkit for stress management and panic will give you a fantastic resource.

(28:00) If you could go back in time to any point, where would you travel to, and what would you tell yourself?

So many little things like branding, matching t-shirts, the equipment I didn’t need… In hindsight, I should have made shortbread and sold it. Make sure that you’re hiring the right people, especially people that are smarter than you. Look for people that ask you questions about how they grow and how they can use their skills within the company.

(31:51) How can people find and buy your product?

Online is the best way. I have a very robust e-commerce setup, which is probably what saved my business during the pandemic. In Ontario, we are in both smaller and larger retail stores. My tagline was to have a piece of shortbread in the mouth of every Canadian by 2020. Now, it’s my goal by 2022.

Are you a first-time purchaser? Enter “bakemehappy10” and receive 10% off! Thank you, Trisha, for joining us, and we look forward to sharing your goods with our team!