Meet Cheryl Honig, Founder/Baker of The Blessed Braid
I started my business to give challah eaters in Orange County better challah than what is currently available. After tasting many challahs at religious events, and purchasing challah at local grocery stores, I knew that my homemade challah was tastier, more beautiful, and healthier. I have been baking challah for decades, but formed my business in November 2019.
Our Ideal Customers
My customers are challah eaters, foodies, religious/nonreligious Jews, and people who like bread! While Jewish people typically know and understand what challah is, I find that non-Jews also are attracted to challah. Many people I speak with have grown up enjoying challah, and have a story to tell about their memories with challah. My business helps my customers experience a food they associate with their childhood, and their family members. My business evokes warm memories, and brings to mind aromas of their childhood homes. Many of my customers use challah, and the celebration of Shabbat as their link to Judaism. Challah is a very meaningful and impactful food, and is an important symbol that brings people together.
Biggest Challenge
My biggest challenge was to make the decision to turn my passion for challah into a business. I hesitated for a year while contemplating the pros and cons of starting a business. I was very confident in my product, and its superiority over store bought challahs, but the process of creating a legal food business in my home overwhelmed me. Once I decided to move forward, taking the process one step at a time, I gained momentum, and my actions and decision making started to flow freely.
Recent Success
Prior to the shelter in place order, I sold my challah at Open Market OC. I passed out samples to shoppers, and they chose a challah from my store front display to purchase. While passing out samples, I had many shoppers recount their story of growing up eating challah. One man said his mother made challah every week, but she passed away several years ago, and he started to tear up with the memories that my challah helped him to experience. That was a beautiful moment. Another shopper said to me that he can’t find challah this good in any store. I love to hear that!
How We Keep Going
Exclamations of joy and delight upon tasting my challah keep me going. Every time a customer enjoys what I baked, it is affirmation that I need to continue to spread the word, and let people know The Blessed Braid exists. My key purpose is to establish a customer base, and then create a Kosher bakery in Orange County.
Community First
My business brings delicious, beautiful, and healthy challah bread to Orange County. My challah has no dairy, and no preservatives. It is homemade, and hand-braided, and delivered free to most areas of Orange County. My business elevates that status of challah as an important symbol of the Jewish religion
In Five Years…
I see my business becoming a Kosher bakery, and expanding to include a couple more flavors of challah, and traditional Jewish baked goods like hamantaschen, rugelah, honey cake, and kamishbrot. I also want to offer cookies, cakes, and cupcakes so Jews who keep Kosher can purchase these items at a local Kosher bakery instead of traveling to a Kosher bakery in Los Angeles.
I will continue to pursue Open Market OC, Business Network International ( I am a member of the Strategic Alliance 2.0 chapter), the Globe Newspaper of Laguna Woods Village (I am a resident of Laguna Woods), social media, and friends and family to expose my business and challah to potential customers. I will continue to watch the faces of, and listen to the words of people who taste my challah. I will continue to be receptive to the suggestions and comments of experienced business people.
We’re Inspired By
I am inspired as I drive around and see many small businesses. Someone had to have an idea to start that business. They had to make the decisions, and take the steps that I have to take. If they can do it, I can too!
Entrepreneurs, Listen Up
Don’t get overwhelmed with everything you have to do to start a business.
Be very organized, and make a list of tasks, and prioritize that list. Start at the top of the list, and choose just one task. Complete it. Give yourself a pat on the back, then tackle the next task. Keep going like this, and before you know it, your tasks will be accomplished. Also, keep this in mind…. Once you start learning about something, and the necessary steps to achieve it, you will notice that it isn’t as difficult as you first thought.
Connect with Cheryl Honig
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