A DELAND STAPLE — BakeChop’s exterior with the iconic dome of the Historic Volusia County Courthouse visible.
Regular massage, plenty of sleep, and fresh-pressed organic juice from Beeatroot.
Those are some of Taylor Mims Bass’ tools for handling her busy life, as the mother of two children under the age of 6, and the owner of three DeLand businesses.
Her tips for maintaining high energy — and maintaining a happy marriage to Justin Bass — are among insights Bass shares in a 44-minute interview that’s part of The Beacon’s Now You Know series of podcasts with local people.
Bass owns BakeChop restaurant at 110 Artisan Alley, which she founded with partner Stevie Vermillion six years ago, when both women were in their mid-20s.
Bass eventually bought Vermillion’s share of the business, and has since expanded with the retail store and meat market called BakeChop Market, at 320 S. Spring Garden Ave.
In December 2022, Bass bought Venue 142, an events space and commercial kitchen at 142 N. Woodland Blvd.
Although she worked, at minimum, 60 hours a week when BakeChop first opened, now that she has a family, Bass tries to maintain a 9-5 schedule, five days a week.
“When I first opened BakeChop, before I had a family, I could put in the 60 hours a week. That was minimal, 60 hours,” Bass shares in the podcast. “That’s what it takes to open a restaurant. That was my investment. All I had was time. I knew that was what I had to put in to make a successful business.”
As the restaurant has matured, that has changed.
“I’ve been able to find good people to help me run it, to keep on the traditions that we established as a team, so I don’t have to put in as much time.”
During the podcast, Bass also talks about how she handles stress, and why she may have less trouble than other restaurants do attracting employees.
“BakeChop is a family. When I hire someone, I ask them what they’re looking for, what they want from us,” she said.
She also talks about BakeChop’s commitment to quality, and compares her restaurant to eateries where few items are made from scratch.
“Now everything is just ordered, or made in a factory,” she said. “It’s cutting costs, it’s cutting labor, but you cut the quality and you cut the passion and the talent out of it, too,” she said.
You might not guess that the owner of three businesses skipped the day in culinary school when the teachers focused on entrepreneurship.
“I didn’t ever want to open a restaurant,” Bass told The Beacon. “In culinary school, I actually skipped the day of ‘open your own restaurant day’ because, why would I ever do that?”
Among other topics, Bass talks about the challenges of staying profitable as food costs rise.
“If I was doing things for money, I wouldn’t be doing this,” she told us.
She also talks about how the COVID pandemic changed us, what makes DeLand special, and the role of social media in local business.
We invite you to give a listen.
To listen to more episodes of “Now You Know” click HERE or search for the show wherever you listen to podcasts.
