Thomas Kerscevsky > writes:

>From: Thomas Kerscevsky >
>Newsgroups: rec.food.baking
>Subject: Is this a good time to buy a bakery?
>Date: Tue, 02 Mar 2004 02:35:15 GMT
>
>I have an opportunity to buy a small neighborhood bakery from a baker
>who wants to retire. Baking has been a hobby of mine for 20+ years and
>in many respects this opportunity represents what could be the
>realization of a dream - or at least a fantasy.
.. . .
> 6. I understand business (former finance professor, current
> consultant)
.. . .

Tom:

One of my friends has been involved in the bakery industry for many
years in various capacities such as overseeing production for a
large, mass-market baking company's plant. About a dozen years ago,
he was hired by a national chain of franchised bakeries to develop
techniques and training materials for the franchisees.

One of the debates among management was whether it was easier to
train a baker how to run a business operation or train a person with
experience in business how to produce a good bakery product.

After looking at their experience with their existing franchisees,
they concluded that it's easier to learn business than baking. It's
possible to provide step-by-step guides for things like accounting,
advertising and cash management. It's much more difficult to teach
the skills and qualitative judgement which come from experience in
hands-on baking.

Your experience as a hobbyist baker should be very helpful in your
understanding of the baking process and your ability to judge the
quality of your commerical product -- and probably more valuable to
the success of your business.

Cheers,
The Old Bear <-- he's not a real bear but he is a real MBA