From Banker to Baker: New Businesswoman Sets Up Shop In Columbia

With just word-of-mouth publicity and a few emails sent to friends and acquaintances, Linda’s Bakery opened in the Snowden Center earlier this month to a "great crowd."

"I was very happy with the crowd — Howard County has very active foodies." owner Linda Cheng said.

The Rockville resident said being a small business owner has its challenges but it’s worth it if you're doing something you really love.

Cheng, 30, said she has been baking professionally for five years and graduated with honors from the L’Academie de Cuisine’s Pastry Arts Program in Gaithersburg.

She has worked at a number of bakeries over the last few years, but recently decided to strike out on her own.

Despite her current culinary credentials, at one time Cheng saw herself as a different kind of businesswoman. She earned a degree in finance from the University of Maryland in 2003 and initially worked as a mortgage banker.

But baking has always been a passion for Cheng and she eventually decided to leave the corporate world behind for the bakery. Though not where she originally thought she would be career-wise, Cheng said her background in business management certainly came in handy as she launched her first store.

Cheng said she decided to set up shop in Columbia because it seemed like a community willing to support a small, family-owned business.

“It’s just such a great community,” she said. “It's family friendly, and we are a family-oriented business.”

Although the business just opened, Cheng said it was challenging at times to get the 1,500 square-foot space ready for baking.

One big challenge involved an essential element to any bakery — the oven. When the oven she ordered arrived at the store earlier this fall, she quickly discovered it was slightly too big to fit through the door.

After partially dismantling the oven and enlisting some help from some of the employees at the nearby Papa John's, they were able to hoist it inside.

“That was pretty interesting,” she said.

The bakery will employ a baker’s assistant and one or two counter sales positions, according to Cheng.

“We’re always constantly looking, particularly for counter sales,” she said.

The bakery shop will serve coffee and pastries daily and offer custom cakes for weddings, anniversaries and birthdays. A number of other sweet treats will also be available, including cupcakes and European pastries like eclairs, French apple tarts and Napoleons. A variety of fresh baked breads will also be available.

The shop does not have a specialty as of yet, but Cheng said she’s quite well known for her fresh fruit cake which she makes with yellow sponge cake, whipped cream and fresh fruit.

She also plans to carry a full line of holiday specialty items, including decorated cupcakes, gingerbread poundcake and Buche de Noel, the traditional French yule log.

"We'll also have gingerbread house kits for the kid to take home and make," she said. "We'll bake the houses and include the candy and royal icing for decorating."

Cheng said she makes everything from scratch using a variety of ingredients, focusing on taste above all else. She said for that reason, there isn't anything fat-free on her menu.

“When you’re coming in here and getting dessert, you have to go all the way,” she said.

Linda’s Bakery will be open six days a week from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Cheng is still doing some research, but she's leaning toward closing on Mondays, when many other stores in the center are closed as well.

For more information call the bakery at (410) 381-4390 or visit the website.