THIENSVILLE, Wis. — The holidays are here, and bakeries are gearing up for the busy season. They’re also dealing with higher prices for ingredients.
What You Need To Know
- The price for essential ingredients for bakers, such as butter, sugar and chocolate, has nearly doubled
- Mila’s European Bakery is fighting inflation with new business strategies like boosting social media presence, offering workshops, and targeting corporate entities with branded products
- Anna Bakalinsky, owner of Mila’s, said she believes you have to change with the times to stay in business, and push through tough economic times
Anna Bakalinsky owns Mila’s European Bakery in Thiensville, Wisconsin.
She’s one of many small business owners looking for ways to outsmart inflation.
Most of the essential ingredients used to make Bakalinsky’s bakery items have nearly doubled in price.
On top of that, labor and supply shortages, along with high shipping costs, are taking a toll.
That’s why Bakalinsky is creating new business strategies to boost her bottom line.
She’s started offering store workshops on cake and cookie decorating and made her social media platforms a higher priority.
This has given Bakalinsky’s business more interaction in the community and brought in new customers.
“We are thriving on the Facebook, also Instagram. We do a little bit of TikTok. I know, my kids always laugh at me about that. ‘Mom, get off TikTok, it’s for the younger generation, you’re too old,’” laughed Bakalinsky.
She said the workshops are a lot of fun and a great way to connect with customers.
“We are really creating a value-added experience for people to come in and enjoy themselves, and at the same time, look around, maybe they’ll buy something, maybe they’ll need something another time,” said Bakalinsky.
She’s also planning for the slower post-holiday season. Bakalinsky has been handing out red gift envelopes to her customers filled with coupons and freebies that can be redeemed in January.
Bakalinsky is also putting her marketing degree to good use. She said she plans to target corporate businesses by marketing branded cookies.
She’s also started a blog, featured on her store website, to stir up more interest in her store.
The bakery was started by Bakalinsky’s parents, Mark and Mila Kofman in 1981.
And she said she’s determined to keep the family’s legacy going — despite economic challenges.
“We are part of the tradition. We’ve been around for 41 plus years. We want to remain part of the community and survive, and we are not going to let inflation get us down,” she said.
To check out Mila’s European Bakery and for a full list of workshops and offerings, visit their website.