Sweet Ideas in the Mix For Owner of Mt. Vernon's Only Bakery

*Stock photo. Not an example of an item from this bakery.

By this time next year, the owner of White Tree Bakery in Mount Vernon hopes to be so flooded with business, so she can move her operation out of her home and into a brick-and-mortar location.

Jen Juhl started her bustling business last Thanksgiving when she started taking pie orders at the prompting of friends and family. After 17of those pie orders came her eureka moment. She could make a good go of this.

According to the Cedar Rapids Gazette, the bakery is the only one in Mt. Vernon and it's currently only being run out of Juhl's 1900s home with a wide variety of cakes, cookies, scones, and more — all made in-house.

After that Thanksgiving boom last year, she "officially" opened her business around New Year's, later being invited or signing up to participate in the farmers market at Morning Glory farm over the summer. By August, she had enough demand to open the storefront in her home’s foyer for four hours every Friday.

It's become such a successful endeavor that she's been able to add an extra day to her operation--yet she is still just working from home. Previously the clerk at the neonatal intensive care unit at the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics, she has 2 kids, ages 4 and 6. They and the pandemic changed Juhl's priorities a bit. She wants to someday own a real storefront, so she says she's made an investment in a business that keeps her busy without a lot of free time now but looks to pay dividends in the future.

If you'd like to order something from the White Tree Bakery this holiday season or any time, her Friday hours from 2-6 p.m. offer a variety of coffee cakes, bars, cookies, and cakes for purchase. Custom and advance orders can be placed via email or phone, at (319) 855-8663. Look for her to be adding that second day, likely on Thursdays very soon!

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