Mixing Up Success with Baker Dani Annala

Dani Annala
  • 5.0 (3)
  • ENTREPRENEURSHIP

In the kitchen and in business, success starts with the right mix of ingredients. Join baker, teacher, and small-business mentor Dani Annala, founder of Dani’s Kitchen Shop, as she blends real talk about entrepreneurship with stories from her kitchen and life in Oregon’s Hood River Valley. Each episode serves up practical tips, honest lessons, and inspiring conversations about building a business — and a lifestyle — you truly love. Whether you’re a home baker dreaming of your first sale, a small business owner ready to grow, or someone chasing a creative calling, Mixing Up Success will help you find your recipe for thriving on your own terms. It’s time to roll up your sleeves, trust your process, and start mixing up your version of success.

Episodes

  1. Growing into Leadership with Mercedes

    3D AGO

    Growing into Leadership with Mercedes

    After running the bakery solo for a month (cranking out ~1,600 cookies start-to-finish and still beating last year’s sales), Dani reunites with lead baker Mercedes to unpack what real leadership looks like inside a small creative business. They trace Mercedes’ journey from family nanny to indispensable kitchen lead, and share how communication, production schedules, and simple systems helped them regain rhythm fast—hitting ~1,200 cookies in four days after reset. If you’re building a baking business or growing a creative team, this episode shows how to empower people, hire for fit, and keep the oven—and the business—humming. Who This Episode Is For Home bakers turning pro and setting up repeatable bakery systemsCreative entrepreneurs hiring their first team memberSmall business owners learning to delegate, lead, and scale sustainablyBig Takeaways Rhythm > hustle: It took a week solo to find rhythm again—and another week post-vacation to regain the team rhythm. Systems make both possible.Empowerment is essential: In small teams, you need self-motivated people who own outcomes, not just tasks.Hire for fit + teach skills: Personality and willingness to learn often beat perfect experience in tiny teams.Communication is the core system: Clear weekly production mapping (orders, cutters, colors, due dates) keeps volume high without burning out.Confidence compounds: Leaders lend confidence early; team members grow into leadership by acting on it. Practical Highlights Mentioned Weekly production map: orders → cutters → icing colors/consistencies → due datesClear role ownership (e.g., oven lead) + fast feedback loopsNormalize quick recovery: fix the mistake, keep the scheduleTrack your own participation so you can step out for teaching, content, and growth projects 🧭 Connect with Dani Website: daniskitchenshop.comInstagram: @daniskitchenshopJoin the Email List: Get weekly business tips, course updates, and inspiration for bakers and creative entrepreneurs JOIN HERE

    36 min
  2. Pricing Without Guilt — How to Confidently Charge What You’re Worth

    NOV 4

    Pricing Without Guilt — How to Confidently Charge What You’re Worth

    In this episode, Dani tackles one of the toughest topics for bakers and creative entrepreneurs — pricing without guilt. She shares her own journey from “fun money” cookie sales to running a full-time bakery that pays the bills and supports her family. You’ll learn how to calculate what your work really costs, why comparing prices is misleading, and how to confidently charge what your craft deserves. If you’ve ever second-guessed your prices or felt guilty raising them, this episode will give you both the mindset and math you need to price sustainably — not emotionally. Key Takeaways 💰 Pricing isn’t about being nice — it’s about being sustainable.If your prices don’t reflect your full costs (time, packaging, overhead, labor), you’re funding a hobby, not running a business.⏱️ Track your time.Even just one week of time tracking can show where your profit is leaking.📍 Your pricing depends on your market.Rent, cost of ingredients, and customer base vary — build your pricing around your numbers, not someone else’s.📈 Build demand before blaming price.When people don’t know you yet, it’s not a pricing problem — it’s a visibility problem.🧁 Flexible pricing isn’t discounting your value.Adjusting prices to move perishable goods or offer specials is smart inventory management.✨ Confidence is clarity.Knowing your numbers removes guilt and lets you stand behind your prices with pride.Memorable Quotes “If your prices don’t reflect the true cost of your work, you’re not running a business — you’re funding a hobby.” “Don’t compare your prices to someone else’s business. You don’t know their costs, their space, or if they’re even paying themselves.” “When demand grows, so does your power in pricing.” “You can’t build a sustainable business on people who only want a deal.” Reflection Prompt 💭 Do my prices support the life I want, or am I trying to make them make sense to someone else? Mentioned in This Episode The Business of Baking Course: Learn how to calculate costs, handle price objections, and raise your rates with confidence.👉 Join Here

    9 min
  3. The Recipe for Business Success — 5 Ingredients Every Entrepreneur Needs

    NOV 4

    The Recipe for Business Success — 5 Ingredients Every Entrepreneur Needs

    In this episode, Dani shares the five essential ingredients that every small-business owner needs to create a business that’s not only profitable but also sustainable, joyful, and deeply fulfilling. Drawing parallels between baking and business, Dani breaks down the recipe that’s guided her own growth from cookie artist to creative entrepreneur, teacher, and mentor. She walks through the five ingredients — Mission, Brand, Systems, Pricing, and Community — with real stories from her journey building Dani’s Kitchen Shop from a passion project into a thriving, purpose-driven company. Whether you’re a home baker dreaming of your first sale or a seasoned entrepreneur ready to refine your strategy, this episode will help you slow down, find clarity, and build a business that rises with intention. 🧁 What You’ll Learn Mission: How to identify your “why” and revisit it as your business evolvesBrand: Finding your authentic flavor and staying consistent across everything you createSystems: Why structure gives you freedom (and how to start small)Pricing: Setting prices that reflect your value, experience, and sustainability — not guiltCommunity: Building connections that lift you up and evolve as you grow💬 Key Takeaways “Your mission is the heartbeat of your business — it keeps you showing up on the hard days.”“Authenticity and consistency are what make a brand memorable and meaningful.”“Systems protect your creativity — structure creates freedom.”“Pricing isn’t about greed; it’s about sustainability and paying yourself fairly.”“You don’t have to sit at someone else’s table — build your own and invite others to grow with you.”🌟 Episode Resources & Mentions Dani’s Kitchen Shop: daniskitchenshop.comBusiness of Baking – Launching January 2026: Turn your passion into a profitable planFollow along on Instagram → @daniskitchenshop🧭 Connect with Dani Website: daniskitchenshop.comInstagram: @daniskitchenshopJoin the Email List: Get weekly business tips, course updates, and inspiration for bakers and creative entrepreneurs JOIN HERE

    34 min
  4. How It All Began: The Story Behind Dani’s Kitchen Shop

    NOV 4

    How It All Began: The Story Behind Dani’s Kitchen Shop

    In the very first episode of Mixing Up Success, host Dani Annala—baker, teacher, and business owner behind Dani’s Kitchen Shop—shares how her dream of teaching food and connection turned into a thriving bakery, teaching kitchen, and business mentorship brand. From hauling ovens into classrooms to running a commercial bakery and teaching hundreds of students, Dani walks you through the highs, heartbreaks, and lessons that shaped her journey. You’ll hear how agriculture, creativity, and entrepreneurship blend together in her story—and how those same ingredients can help you build a business and lifestyle you love. 💡 In This Episode, You’ll Learn: How Dani turned a teaching dream into a real kitchen and business.The pivotal moments that led her from agriculture and food safety into baking full-time.What running a multi-generation orchard taught her about patience, resilience, and balance.How loss, motherhood, and community fueled her purpose.The steps that turned Dani’s Kitchen Shop from a home bakery into a commercial space and teaching hub.Why she believes baking and business share the same recipe for success—balance, patience, and willingness to experiment.🧁 Episode Quote: “Business, especially creative business, is just like baking—it’s all about balance, patience, and the willingness to experiment.” 🌿 About the Show: Mixing Up Success is the podcast for bakers and creative entrepreneurs ready to blend creativity and strategy into a business—and a lifestyle—they love. Join Dani for real conversations about baking, branding, and building your dream from scratch, one ingredient at a time. ✨ Connect with Dani: Website: www.daniskitchenshop.comInstagram: @daniskitchenshopJoin the Community: Classes, recipes, and small business resources available online

    11 min

  5. OCT 8

    Season 1 Trailer

    Welcome to Mixing Up Success — the podcast that helps bakers and small business owners mix together the right ingredients to grow a thriving business and a lifestyle they love. I’m Dani, founder of Dani’s Kitchen Shop — a baker turned business mentor who’s learned firsthand that success isn’t about having the perfect recipe, it’s about learning to mix, adjust, and rise with every season. In this first season, you’ll hear real stories and practical strategies for building your business with purpose and balance. Along the way, I’ll be joined by my team — Mercedes, our lead baker; Michelle, my go-to food scientist; and Alyssa, my creative marketing partner — as we talk about everything from pricing and food safety to marketing, leadership, and growth. Whether you’re elbow-deep in cookie dough or knee-deep in spreadsheets, Mixing Up Success will help you find fresh inspiration and the confidence to build a business that truly fits your life. Pull up a chair — it’s time to start mixing up your version of success. Our first season will drop November 4th with the first three episodes.

    1 min
  • 5 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

In the kitchen and in business, success starts with the right mix of ingredients. Join baker, teacher, and small-business mentor Dani Annala, founder of Dani’s Kitchen Shop, as she blends real talk about entrepreneurship with stories from her kitchen and life in Oregon’s Hood River Valley. Each episode serves up practical tips, honest lessons, and inspiring conversations about building a business — and a lifestyle — you truly love. Whether you’re a home baker dreaming of your first sale, a small business owner ready to grow, or someone chasing a creative calling, Mixing Up Success will help you find your recipe for thriving on your own terms. It’s time to roll up your sleeves, trust your process, and start mixing up your version of success.

Information

  • Creator
    Dani Annala
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    5
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Dani Annala

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