From Single Mum to 140 Staff: How Jenna Sanders Built Kenilworth Bakery

Jenna Sanders was 21 years old, a single mum with two kids…And decided to buy a bakery.No systems. No tech. No real plan.Just grit, fresh product, and a vision to turn a small country bakery into a destination people would drive hours for.Fast forward 10 years:4 locations. 140 staff. Thousands of donuts sold every single day.And one viral moment that changed everything.In this episode, Jenna breaks down the real story behind Kenilworth Bakery. From $500 days and handwritten notebooks… to going viral with a kilo donut… to building a scalable, profitable business without losing the “magic” that made it special.This is a masterclass in branding, social media, team culture, and knowing your numbers.You’ll hear:00:00 – From single mum to buying a bakery at 24 05:00 – The early days: $500 revenue and starting from scratch 08:00 – The kilo donut that went viral (3.5M views overnight) 12:30 – Handling explosive demand with no systems in place 16:00 – Using social media as free marketing (before it was normal) 20:00 – Why going viral means nothing without a great product 24:00 – Bringing in structure: the role of Jenna’s brother 27:30 – The simple data shift that made the business profitable 32:00 – Expanding to multiple locations (and the challenges) 38:00 – Hiring for personality over experience 42:00 – Creating “magic” in-store that keeps customers coming back 46:00 – Building culture, team morale & making work fun 50:00 – Why most businesses are underutilising social media 54:00 – Jenna’s advice for anyone starting from scratchKey TakeawaysGoing viral is powerful — but only if your product makes people come backYou don’t need fancy systems to start, but you do need them to scaleHire for personality — skills can be taught, energy can’tData and numbers are what turn growth into profitSocial media is still one of the most underused tools in hospitalityCreating a memorable customer experience is what builds long-term successIf you’re ready to turn your venue into a profitable, scalable business, book a call with the Foodie Coaches team at:www.foodiecoaches.comFollow along behind the scenes: Instagram: ⁠@foodie_coaches - https://www.instagram.com/foodie_coaches/⁠ Instagram: ⁠@tim.kummerfeld⁠ - https://www.instagram.com/tim.kummerfeld/New episodes every Wednesday.