Business notebook: Area baker discovers sweet spot for sales

Michelle Chesser says this is has been "the year."

The baker behind the popular cinnamon rolls and other sweet treats at Home Sweet Home Family Bakery said during 2015, her business has really taken off.

Chesser said she used to get excited when she was able to sell four pans of the cinnamon rolls at the Cape Girardeau Farmers' Market.

"Now, on a slow day, we make eight," she said. "This has been a good year."

Chesser and her family first became involved with farmers' markets about six years ago by selling produce because she wanted her children to learn the value of work.

Michelle Chesser, owner of Home Sweet Home Family Bakery, packs up two cinnamon rolls for a customer Thursday at the Cape Girardeau Farmers' Market. (Laura Simon)

"But then we started eating everything we were growing," she said.

So gradually they added the baked goods, which eventually replaced the produce entirely.

Chesser, who gets up at 4:30 a.m. on market days during the summer, said her favorite thing to bake is cakes.

"I can be creative with them, and I don't do them all year," she said.

Chesser and her four children do all their baking at the family home. She has three daughters, including 14-year-old twins, and one son. She said she can do three markets a week, thanks to their help.

"Two kids stay at home. ... They clean up the house and cook dinner, and then one comes with me," she said.

She said the twins have learned how to make everything the bakery sells from start to finish. They started by learning to decorate cupcakes but soon started learning the baking.

"Now, they can do it just as well as I can," she said.

While much of the bakery's business comes from sales at farmers' markets, they also sell their goods at craft fairs and for the first time this year are taking holiday orders. The most popular holiday request: cinnamon rolls, of course.

"People are wanting me to bake cinnamon rolls so that they can have them for Christmas [or] Thanksgiving breakfast," Chesser said. "We've already gotten lots of orders for those. ..."

A slice of rainbow cake available from the Home Sweet Home Family Bakery stand, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2015 at the Cape Girardeau Farmers Market. (Laura Simon)

Chesser said this week's farmers market -- her 50th -- is the last for the year, so she will have more time to fill the holiday orders. She said she will miss the people she gets to see every week at the market, however.

"I love my market family," she said.

30th annual Ag Expo to be held

Ag Expo will celebrate its 30th anniversary in January in Poplar Bluff, Missouri.

The event will be from 1 to 8 p.m. Jan. 15 and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Jan. 16. Admission is $1 for adults and free for college students and youths.

The expo will have 118 booths educating attendees on agriculture and natural resources and their effect on the area's economy. There will be entertainment such as youth dancing, music, seminars and pageants. Several contests also will be held.

The expo is sponsored by the Butler County University of Missouri Extension Council and the Ag Club of Three Rivers College. For more information, contact the University of Missouri Extension Center in Poplar Bluff or visit extension.missouri.edu/butler.

Long John Silver's changes owner

Long John Silver's, 25 S. Kingshighway in Cape Girardeau, is under new ownership.

A recently filed business license names Pinnacle Hospitality Group as the restaurant's new owner.

The location previously was owned by Fish Perfect LLC, based in Mississippi.

Hospital workers get emergency training

Emergency response leaders from SoutheastHEALTH recently attended a weeklong intensive training program at the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Center for Domestic Preparedness in Anniston, Alabama.

Attending from SoutheastHEALTH were environmental safety specialist Blaine Grotto; nurse manager, emergency services, Lori Merritt; and security IT tech Charles Wilson, according to a news release from the hospital.

Attendees participated in one of three programs: Healthcare Leadership for Mass Casualty Incidents, Hospital Emergency Response Training for Mass Casualty Incidents and Emergency Medical Operations for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Incidents.

At the end of the training, a catastrophic incident was simulated in which all attendees could engage in the response simultaneously.

Business licenses

• Ipseity Creative, 1856 Broadway, is a graphic design, web design and website business owned by Sandra Croyle.
• New To You, 1623 Independence St., owned by Anne Whaley, is a store selling collectibles, antiques and new and used furniture. The store's anticipated opening date is Dec. 1.
• The Men's Wearhouse, 155 Siemers Drive, is part of a retail chain based in Houston that rents and sells men's and boys' formal wear.
• Magnolia's Bridal Boutique, 407 Broadway, owned by Renee Clements, will be a retail store selling gowns and accessories. Its projected opening date is Jan. 7.
• Chocolate Works, 411 Broadway, owned by Sonjay Fonn, is a retail chocolate and candy store that will make chocolate on site. It is projected to open Monday.
• Holistic Health Therapies, 121 S. Broadview, Suite 1, owned by Diana Abernathy, is a business specializing in reflexology and the sale of Youngevity products.
• Tolon Falls Escape, inside West Park Mall at 3049 William St., is a business in which game participants try to escape a scenario by solving puzzles in less than an hour. The business, owned by Todd Farrow, is expected to open Sunday.

kwebster@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3646