Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Wright.
Hi Laura, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
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I may have missed the COVID sourdough boom, but I’ve always had a love for bread at the table.
My mother was an amazing cook, and we always had rolls or a loaf of bread alongside whatever delicious meal she had whipped up. Even now, seeing that bread basket coming at a restaurant still makes me excited. 😂
Fast forward to grown-up Laura, and I had a very picky eater on my hands. One thing I could always count on was him eating whatever rolls or bread happened to be on the table. At one point, he was eating mayo-and-lettuce sandwiches. He hadn’t made it to the ham-and-cheese stage yet, but thankfully, we eventually got there! 😂
I remember telling my husband, “We have got to find Lincoln some healthier bread options than what we’re getting at the store.”
And then there was the price. Every time we grabbed rolls or a loaf of bread, it seemed like it was $6, and the prices just kept climbing. Meanwhile, my Texas toast garlic bread was getting so thin it was practically Maryland-sized toast. 😂
At the time, I was also running an in-home daycare. When you have three little kids and don’t exactly have a nice, high-end job waiting to protect you financially, you do what a lot of stay-at-home moms do….. you find a way to make it work. For me, that was opening an in-home daycare. And honestly, I had some trust issues about letting other people take care of my kids anyway. 😅
I actually started with regular yeast. I wanted to make healthier, homemade bread for my family, and I really felt like I was doing pretty well with it. Then I started down the sourdough path, and that’s where things really clicked for me.
Having ADHD, I was constantly forgetting to buy those little packets of yeast. Sourdough seemed like a much better system….. as long as I remembered to buy flour, of course. 😂
I absolutely failed my first starter. But I tried again.
We had just moved into a new house, and on October 4, my first sourdough starter was born. I went through a couple of names over the next few months, but none of them really felt right. Eventually, I landed on “Hank”….. because, of course, country music and Tennessee. Hank has been thriving ever since.
I had also set the daycare back up in our new home, but the more bread I made, the more I practiced, and the more I realized I was actually getting some pretty great loaves. Naturally, I started posting them on my personal Facebook page.
Friends and neighbors started saying, “You should sell these,” or “Make me one!”
At first, I just gifted them. The feedback was so positive, although looking back now, I can definitely see that I still had a ways to go. 😂 But the momentum was there.
Then I bought more Dutch ovens. Then I got a Costco membership.
Okay….. I was officially the bread lady in the neighborhood.
Eventually, I started thinking, “What if I closed the daycare and actually sold enough bread to replace that income?”
I only had one son who wasn’t in school yet, and he would soon be joining Amelia and Lincoln in school. It felt like the timing might actually make sense.
My husband, Jacob, was incredibly supportive. He told me to take whatever road I wanted and see where it led. I’m sure part of him was also ready to get our house back from the daycare. 😂 But I truly think he believed in it before I did. He seemed to have more confidence that I could actually make this work than I had in myself at the time.
My first real market opportunity came through The Market at 109. I brought 25 loaves and sold out in about an hour and a half.
The next market, I did the same thing….. only this time I brought somewhere around 35 to 38 loaves. And they sold.
That was when the little voice in my head started saying, “Okay….. maybe this could actually be a business.”
I remember Jacob and I talking about getting a Simply Bread oven. It was about a $9,500 investment, and I was hesitant. I knew I wanted it. I talked about it. I told everyone I was going to get one. 😂 But actually spending that kind of money was a different story.
As a mother, I knew a million other things we could have put $9,500 toward. There’s always something when you have three kids and a household to take care of.
But Jacob believed in it.
Ultimately, he was the one who placed the order. He had the confidence that I was still trying to find in myself.
At that point, I was literally shuffling four Dutch ovens around my kitchen, trying to keep up with the demand. I knew I needed to make a change if I was going to grow, and the Simply Bread oven would take me from baking four loaves at a time to being able to bake 12.
That was a huge leap for me.
The daycare was closed, and I officially became a full-time microbakery.
I probably could have named the business a hundred different things and chosen a hundred different colors, but Tennessee was home. I live in the Villages of Hunters Point, so “The Village Sourdough” just felt right.
At first, I figured I would do a few markets and sell to people in my neighborhood. That felt big enough.
Then I got brave.
I asked a local small grocery store if they would let me bring in a few loaves.
Daniel at Mike’s Foodland gave me my first big shot, and I will forever be grateful to him for that. That first store opportunity was a huge turning point for me. Someone outside of my immediate circle was willing to take a chance on this little bakery I was building out of my home.
From there, I started reaching out to other stores. Some were just for a season, and some simply weren’t the right fit, but little by little, The Village Sourdough found its place.
Today, our bread sits in five stores and a local farmstand. And now we’re taking another big step….. we have our own mini farmstand inside the Mike’s Foodland location in Lebanon, which we’re debuting this October.
It’s funny to look back at that first 25-loaf market and realize how far those loaves have taken us. sorry i know you said brief and trimmed a lot still. haha!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Absolutely not. 😂 I’ve had plenty of fails.
We’ve had sickness take us out of events, flavors that didn’t work, and a few times when refrigerator doors weren’t completely shut and I lost entire batches….. sometimes 35+ loaves at once. Sometimes I’m up at 3 a.m. because Hank got a little overzealous, or I forgot to turn up the AC and my dough had other plans. 😂
But honestly, my biggest obstacle is my HOA.
Because I live in an HOA, I can’t have my own farmstand at home. That would be a huge game changer for the bakery. I wouldn’t have to drive all over town, sometimes 50 minutes away, just to make drops, and I could offer more products and make things on a whim.
The other challenge is production. The Simply Bread oven was a huge investment, and I chose it over a spiral mixer, so I still mix every batch completely by hand. A mixer is definitely a goal down the road, but another oven would also help shorten those long bake days.
There are definitely hard days, but that’s part of being a microbakery. You lose a batch, learn from it, stay up way too late, and get back in the kitchen the next day.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’ve placed at the Tennessee State Fair two years in a row, and I was also featured on Today in Nashville. The segment was about four minutes, which was probably long enough for this camera-shy baker! I was so nervous that day. I’m pretty sure acting is not in the cards for me.
But honestly, I think what sets The Village Sourdough apart most is how personal I’ve made it. I probably post way too much. Sometimes my social media feels more like a journal than a professional business page. Even ChatGPT has given up on me a few times, telling me to keep things more polished and professional.
And yet, here I am, putting my kid’s height on the farmstand that’s going into a store.
That’s just who I am. My ADHD posts, behind-the-scenes moments, family stories, random thoughts, and probably-too-much information have become part of the business. I’m not always perfectly polished, but I am real. People know the person behind the bread, and I think that has helped make The Village Sourdough feel personal and familiar.
I’m known for my delicious sourdough breads, and I’ve intentionally kept my menu pretty small. I’d rather do a handful of things really well than try to be everything to everyone. Plus, I’ve made so many wonderful vendor friends along the way.
I love working with other local small businesses whenever I can. For example, we use farm-fresh eggs from Montgomery Farms, and Lovers Lane Farmstand saves us a spot at their market. I love knowing where the ingredients come from and being able to support another local family while they support mine.
There’s something different about Middle Tennessee, especially around Lebanon, Watertown, Westmoreland, and Hartsville. There’s a real sense of community. here that goes beyond competition. We share each other’s businesses, recommend each other, and genuinely buy from one another.The air just feels different here.
Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
nope overshared enough
Pricing:
- 15-18 per loaf
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thevillagesourdough.tn?stkn=MjBpYnB5ZTl0OHdv&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1QTipQb1BZ/?mibextid=wwXIfr
