Above: Me leading a recent tour with industry folks as part of Farm to Plate
Hey Friends,
Before I started Butterfly Bakery, I spent my college summers working as a computer programmer. My dad is a programmer, my mom is a mathematician and astronomer, so tech was just part of my life.
When it came to building my first website, I knew enough to know I didn't want to spend my days writing code. So my first website wasn't much more than an online business card. Its entire job was to help tourists who found us at the farmers market find us again after they got home.
Our Farmers Market booth in 2014 - in our early savory days
I figured my job was to make food worth talking about. If I did that well enough, other people would tell the story. Word of mouth built this company one bottle, one jar, and one customer at a time.
It worked - for over 20 years.
But over the last year I realized that nobody can tell our story the way I can.
A WCAX Interview at Familia Farm talking about Pepper Patrons
Nobody else is going to explain why we buy peppers from small Vermont farms, why we freeze them at harvest instead of making mash, why I get excited about caramel on strawberries or a hot sauce that tastes like summer in a bottle. Those stories are part of what you're buying every time you place an order.
So I started sharing them.
The chart below is our daily rolling 365-day website sales over the last ten years. That steep climb at the end didn't happen because of any changes in our kitchen. It happened because I finally invited you into what we've been doing all along.
Thank you for reading these emails, watching the videos, sharing them with friends, and supporting what we're building here in Vermont.
And if one of those stories has had you thinking, "I really should try that sauce," or "I need to restock my caramel," I'd love for today to be the day you do.
Whether you're stocking up on an old favorite or trying something completely new, every order helps us keep making food that's worth talking about.
If you want to hear more stories about what we do and how we got here, follow us on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube or Facebook.
❤️ Claire
CEO & Founder
Butterfly Bakery of Vermont & Fat Toad Farm
