Nancy Bunkelman
The Ovens of Gracie O’Malley &
Golden Gourmet Wedding Cakes
Delafield, Wisconsin
Investments in small businesses are sometimes long-term bets on success, but the payoff can be sweet … in this case, literally. An SBA microloan in 1992 helped build a bakery in Nancy Bunkelman’s basement, but it was several years before this artist/baker was “discovered.”
When she was discovered, however, it was in a big way. Bunkelman had taken some chocolate-covered, Wisconsin-shaped cookies to a reception for the Wisconsin Women’s Business Initiative Corp. WWBIC is the SBA women’s business center that had made her microloan and helped her start her business. The cookies caught the attention of the state’s first family, and before she knew it, Bunkelman was making Christmas cookies-500 of them, all hand-decorated, to adorn the 9-foot Christmas tree in the dining room of the governor’s mansion. Another 500 cookies were strung on ribbon to make garlands. To accomplish this feat, Bunkelman persuaded friends to help paint cookies with icing, and sometimes worked until 4 a.m.
Her “designer” cookies aren’t her only claim to fame, however. Out of the little bakery in her basement come all sorts of wonders, including the wedding cakes that are gaining a reputation as the best around by wedding planners. In fact, Bunkelman produces her creations under two labels: The Ovens of Gracie O’Malley and Golden Gourmet Wedding Cakes. Many brides also commission hand-decorated cookies as wedding favors for their guests.
Bunkelman learned to bake from her mother, who used to bake wedding cakes to supplement the income of the family farm near Fond du Lac. Bunkelman baked for friends and neighbors for years before going professional. “I’d thought about it for years,” she says, “but as a single mom, it’s hard to get a loan.” The SBA MicroLoan Program and WWBIC changed all that. And, while it took “seven years of poverty” to build a strong client base, the business is finally taking off and now employs several people part time. “Your soul and your heart take you in the direction you love,” says Bunkelman, who describes her work as “fun, fun, fun!”
For more information about starting your own business, see the SBA’s Online Women’s Business Center. You can even take a quiz to see if you’re ready for financing.