Today we’d like to introduce you to Audrey Dixon.
Hi Audrey, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I worked for Wolfgang Puck Catering at Reunion Dallas for 5 years as a Senior Catering Sales Manager and would bake on the side as a hobby. When the COVID Pandemic hit, no one was having events, and the job position was no longer available. I decided instead of going back in to catering, that I wanted to pursue my passion and work on opening a bakery. My Aunt Jana had previously had a bakery called J.Rae’s in Ft. Worth back in to 2008 and when I mentioned to her the idea of opening a bakery, she suggested that I open a J.Rae’s.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Honestly overall we have had a really good experience with this business. It was of course a struggle at the beginning because we were opening at the end of the pandemic and people were just not out and about like they are today. The first 6 months were definitely a scary time to open a brand-new bakery, but once things started to full open back up, we worked through the kinks and have had a lot of success.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about J.Rae’s Dallas?
We are a bakery located in the Devonshire neighborhood. We specialize in custom sugar cookies, however we also offer cakeballs, cupcakes, cheesecakes and our “top-shelf” cookies (think Chocolate chip. M&M, Oatmeal Raisin, etc.). Everything we make is all 100% made from scratch, everyday. Something that really sets us apart from other bakeries is we try really hard to offer a beautifully decorated sugar cookie but our main focus is the taste. Sugar cookies have gotten a bit of a bad rap in the past and we really wanted to make sure that our cookie was delicious! We don’t use Royal Icing, so we are just offering a bit of a different flavor profile when you are getting our sugar cookies.
I am most proud of the organic growth that we have had and the team that we have built along the way. I opened the bakery at 29 years old and now employ anywhere form 7-10 women at a time! Several of my girls have been with me since we opened. We are small business, and we have a 1400 square foot space that we frequently produce more than 5,000 cookies out of, a day, during the holidays. We are just working hard and trying to produce the best product possible.
What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
That we are just selling cookies!! I operate a business that is supposed to be fun and that brings people joy! It’s hard to not get upset or discouraged when someone isn’t happy with your product or it wasn’t what they expected, but I try to remind myself that we are providing a really fun product for people’s best days!
Pricing:
- Sugar Cookies: $3.75-$5.25
- Cupcakes: $3.50
- Cakeballs: $3.00
- Top Shelf Cookies: $3.50
- Cheesecakes: $29.00-$50.00
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jraesdfw.com
- Instagram: j.raesdallas
- Facebook: J.Raes Dallas
Image Credits
Kayla Enright
