Spotlight on entrepreneur success stories: Erin Baker

Running a small business is stressful and demanding, whether you’ve already found success or you’re just starting out. But when things get tough, what keeps you going day after day?

Steve Jobs once said, “I’m convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance.”

Running a small business is challenging, requiring constant perseverance. But you can do more to keep yourself motived. Many entrepreneurs have a mentor, someone who inspires them. We’re putting the spotlight on entrepreneurs who have what it takes to become successful.

Erin Baker began making healthy breakfast cookies in 1994, inspired by her mom’s healthy baking techniques. She had an idea for a revolutionary way to serve breakfast: in the form of a cookie! Erin Baker’s, the company, was born.

A few years later in 1999, she got a call from a woman asking for the nutritional information as she had been selling them out of jars at Quality Food Centers. The woman then figured out that the cookies were just two Weight Watcher’s points, and word of this spread like wildfire.

Baker’s business went from only two employees to 100 in a year’s time. But suddenly, Weight Watcher’s changed its points system and in a short period of eight months, Baker’s company lost about 60 percent of its distribution. Baker needed a recovery strategy, stat.

How did she restore the business? With new products, of course. The company decided to move away from the diet space. “We realized they were fickle,” Baker told Inc.com. “It’s been very successful for us.”

The company now makes everything from breakfast cookies to granola, all with whole grain, real fruit and no preservatives. Erin Baker’s story is one of staying the course, but also of readjusting your strategy when something isn’t working. Starting a successful business is all about finding what works and being open to changes when something doesn’t fit.

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