The Homestead Oven is a gluten-free cottage bakery, serving the needs of the allergy/health conscious community in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Currently, The Homestead Oven is run by myself, Ryan Lee, from my small home kitchen. I specialize in gluten-free artisan sourdough breads crafted with freshly milled organic grains, naturally leavened pastries, pizza crusts, flour mixes, seasonal jams and more.
A year ago, I began offering my products at local farmers markets, grocery stores, and a free delivery service during the first few months of the pandemic. Since then, The Homestead Oven has been steadily growing, and is now struggling to meet the increased demand.
My products quickly sell out at the markets and stores, and I continue to get requests for increased stock, special orders and new offerings. Even now, operating at max capactity, I simply cannot keep up. The desire and need are here - it is time to take the next step!
The challenge is that taking the next step requires a significant investment of both capital and hands-on help. This campaign has been created to support moving The Homestead Oven into a small commercial kitchen (solo or shared) and hiring help, so it can meet the current demand as well as lay a foundation for future growth.
The goal is to raise $35,000 to take this next step. This will cover additional kitchen equipment, including a second oven and flour mill, worktables, storage racks and other kitchen essentials, rent and employee wages while the business continues to expand, buildout of the new space, and other necessities.
In addition to this new kitchen being a place for food production, it will also have a limited capacity for pickups and walk-in shopping, hands-on community classes, and online learning. As a creative incubator, this space will support our future team in researching and developing an allergy-friendly recipe book, so people all over the world can bring these nourishing traditions into their own hands and homes.
I am very excited to take this next step to better serve my local community, and beyond, and am deeply grateful for any support you can offer. A small gift/token of appreciation will be sent out at the successful conclusion of the campaign. Please contact me with any questions, or inquires about investment opportunities!
Currently, The Homestead Oven is run by myself, Ryan Lee, from my small home kitchen. I specialize in gluten-free artisan sourdough breads crafted with freshly milled organic grains, naturally leavened pastries, pizza crusts, flour mixes, seasonal jams and more.
A year ago, I began offering my products at local farmers markets, grocery stores, and a free delivery service during the first few months of the pandemic. Since then, The Homestead Oven has been steadily growing, and is now struggling to meet the increased demand.
My products quickly sell out at the markets and stores, and I continue to get requests for increased stock, special orders and new offerings. Even now, operating at max capactity, I simply cannot keep up. The desire and need are here - it is time to take the next step!
The challenge is that taking the next step requires a significant investment of both capital and hands-on help. This campaign has been created to support moving The Homestead Oven into a small commercial kitchen (solo or shared) and hiring help, so it can meet the current demand as well as lay a foundation for future growth.
The goal is to raise $35,000 to take this next step. This will cover additional kitchen equipment, including a second oven and flour mill, worktables, storage racks and other kitchen essentials, rent and employee wages while the business continues to expand, buildout of the new space, and other necessities.
In addition to this new kitchen being a place for food production, it will also have a limited capacity for pickups and walk-in shopping, hands-on community classes, and online learning. As a creative incubator, this space will support our future team in researching and developing an allergy-friendly recipe book, so people all over the world can bring these nourishing traditions into their own hands and homes.
I am very excited to take this next step to better serve my local community, and beyond, and am deeply grateful for any support you can offer. A small gift/token of appreciation will be sent out at the successful conclusion of the campaign. Please contact me with any questions, or inquires about investment opportunities!
