Holy Holiday Pet Bakery Rush

 PRO INSIGHT

Let’s talk Dog Bakery!

WHY do all the dog bakeries have such a long lead time? Why can’t you place a large dog cookie order 2 weeks before Christmas? For those of you that don’t know...I added a dog bakery this year to my business. I didn’t just hire professionals and let them have at it. I  actually trained with them and hand make every treat out of my bakery as I am creating my SOP (Standard Operating Procedure Manual) for future employees and management. Additionally, I love the creativity and am a very hands on Owner because I’m very passionate about what I do.

I’ve always sold dog bakery treats from other dog bakeries but never made them myself...until this year. I went from slinging shears to slinging frosting! With my regular retail business and a handful of wholesale clients (only California at the moment) I can tell you that I
look like the photo above nearly every day. Why does it all take so long? I’ll break it down for you so that you’ll understand why it’s important to order far in advance. This way both Retailer & Wholesaler can plan accordingly. 💋

Here’s what a bakery goes through once they receive your order:

1. In order to maximize your (3, 6, 12 month+ shelf life, most orders are baked fresh when your order is placed. Your order then enters the queue with all the other orders placed before yours. There is a commercial dog bakery currently with 800 back orders. We thought dog grooming was tough!
2. Batter is then made, cut, baked, & cooled. 
3. Unless there’s a very, very expensive piece of machinery that stamps out cookies, (most businesses do not have) this is all done by hand. Your order then may or may not need to be dehydrated.
4. Your order then gets decorated. This is fun but very detailed work which takes much longer than you might imagine!
5. Your decorated treats need time to dry again and possibly dehydrate for shipping.
6. Your order then needs to be labeled, cushioned, packaged, possibly shrink wrapped, and then boxed for shipping.
7. Your order is finally shipped off with hopes that nothing smears, breaks, or goes missing.
   Then...the next order begins. 💋

Hopefully this little snippet of insight will help you to understand that when you order from a bakery it doesn't just take a couple of moments to pop something in the oven or a machine and out pops a perfect little doggie stocking stuffer! In fact, I’m quite certain most bakery companies (much like many Grooming Salons) are underpriced for the amount of work they do to get your order to you. So when you order from a dog bakery, be nice, patience, appreciative, and schedule or inventory needs with plenty of lead time especially around the Holidays! This will help your bakery and you sail smoothly through the Holidays!

Until next time… Happy Holiday Retailing
Leel Michelle