Her storefront, at the front of the famed Boston Public market, is described by Customers as “the one place that we feel normal. Her delicious baked goods and prepared foods are free of all allergens and she has built such a reputation that people flock to Boston from all over the United States to get her sumptuous baked goods. However, the entrepreneurial spirit within her kicked into high gear, and she began conceiving of the plans that have led her to reinvent herself and her business.Īs a result, in 2011, Jennifer Lee’s Gourmet Bakery was born. ![]() The irony of a gourmet cook – with a cookie business, no less – was not lost on her! As she recovered from her injury, the natural expectation was that she would be too devastated to return to her business. She was placed on medication that caused serious food sensitivities and meant that she couldn’t have any major allergen foods such as gluten, lactose, et cetera. Undaunted, and with the encouragement of her NFTE teacher and program manager, she increased her cookie sales, through pop up shops, until she was able to cover the cost of college and put herself through school.Īfter college, with the pro bono help of NFTE board members and volunteers, she was about to open her first store when disaster struck, in the form of an accident, which broke her neck. ![]() She then looked to college and really wanted to go to Johnson & Wales for culinary arts, but found the price tag to be out of her reach. Although she was disappointed not to win, her evocative brand name and the delicious idea turned into a concrete business while she was still in school and inspired her to reach higher. Despite “hating school and being ready to drop out”, she remained in school, attributing the reason she stayed to NFTE alone: “NFTE was the only thing that stopped me from quitting school at that time.” Launching a business named Sugar-coated Heaven, she took third place in the NFTE regional competition. ![]() Her interests had always been centered around cooking and baking and her business idea involved cookies dipped in chocolate. Not only did NFTE’s class ignite her entrepreneurial spirit, but it also accentuated her initiative and her self-reliance. Your future does not always go as planned but you can always own it, especially with the tools, the inspiration and the confidence that NFTE provides. Gourmet talent to a Gluten-free flourishing business: how NFTE inspired one student to persist through extraordinary hardships to become an inspirational entrepreneur.
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