Today we’d like to introduce you to Melissa Ludwick.
Hi Melissa, 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?
I began baking professionally in the Spring of 2016, after retirement from the NJ Public School System, where I taught for over 10 years. What has been a hobby and creative outlet since childhood is now a growing business. It all began by selling “YogiBars” – now “Goodness Bars”, to the yoga studio I attended regularly. At about the same time, I was introduced to the owners of a new local market that was opening on LBI, NJ. One taste of my samples was enough to commission me to provide baked goods for their bakery bar. Through that relationship, I began developing a variety of items that would appeal to the coffee crowd.
Sweet Melissa’s baked goodness gained quite a following within the first two summer seasons and it became clear that a commercial kitchen of my own was necessary. In January of 2018, I was in search of kitchen space, void of a storefront. However, this proved to be nonexistent in the area. After finding a vacant kitchen (along with a retail space), I agreed to partner with the market I had become associated with, on the opening of their second location. The construction dust hardly settled though, before the relationship ended in the Fall of that same year.
After such a disheartening experience, I was determined to go out on my own. Although I had never wanted to take on such a huge project, I used my anger as fuel and made the decision to open my own bakery café in the “Queen City” (Beach Haven), LBI, in the Spring of 2019. After experiencing a successful first year, I had even bigger goals for 2020. Running a business during a global pandemic though, proved to be a test of resilience. While the methods of doing business drastically changed from year one, surprisingly, the café’s second year proved to be the most prosperous thus far. And although the business was able to flourish, I longed to build a kitchen studio where I could realize my vision of creating an online boutique bakery with the space to grow without having to manage a storefront.
In late 2020, I stumbled upon the perfect site to build out my dream space. It was truly a blank canvas though and needed much work to turn it into a practical workspace. After a lengthy construction process, Sweet Melissa Goodness officially was ready for business at the end of 2021 in Manahawkin, NJ. Our website functions as a virtual storefront. You can place an order that can be scheduled for pick-up, delivered locally or shipped nationwide. If you are in need of a quick fix, you can currently find our goodness daily at select retail establishments in Ocean and Monmouth Counties. Sweet Melissa Goodness creates custom and wedding cakes, cookies and favors for all your celebrations. We also offer holiday campaigns and specials and participate in seasonal pop ups and farmer’s markets.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has not been a smooth road! Along with all of the usual struggles someone deals with trying to make it in the food business, there has been so many harsh truths learned. The biggest struggle was learning that in business, people will try to take advantage of you, especially perhaps, as a woman. I moved my entire operation 3 times within 4 years, continually having to invest more money each time I thought I was settled. The moves were not only because I wanting a bigger space. I’ve been harassed by landlords, had agreements not been honored, blatantly lied to and worst of all, not been paid what was owed to me.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am the owner & head baker of Sweet Melissa Goodness, an online boutique bakery specializing in signature novelty sweets, custom an wedding cakes, and handmade pastries. We take great pride in creating sweets that look good and taste better. We believe quality, freshness, and taste are equally as important to the appearance and craftsmanship of our items. All of our goods are hand-designed, baked from scratch and freshly made to order. We’ve shipped our goodness as far as L.A., where it has been seen on primetime television on the Bravo Network. We have also designed and created birthday & wedding cakes for celebrity clients.
We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
Retired School Teacher
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sweetmelissagoodness.com
- Instagram: @sweetmelissagoodness
- Facebook: Sweet Melissa Goodness
