JACKSON, Mich. — A popular bakery in downtown Jackson is changing locations. The Blue Julep will be moving from its current location on the corner of Jackson and Pearl streets to 143 W. Michigan Ave. in between Bella Notte and the former Economy Art and Framing building.
Owner Laura Davenport said the current 700-square-foot building is getting too small. Their new location is 1,200 square feet.
“This past weekend with Easter weekend, we were just literally on top of each other bumping into each other,” Davenport said. “When that’s happening, you’re not as efficient as you want to be.”
Baker Sue Sloan has been with Blue Julep since it first opened and has seen business quadruple. She says they sell two or three times more in volume than they did at the start.
“We’re pretty squeezed in here, and we’re very respectful of one another to get around and we seem to get everything done,” she said. “But, we’re busting at the seams because business is doing really well.”
Right now, the bakery has five employees. Davenport plans to hire more while also producing more.
“I really hope to do cakes that are ready made,” she said. “We have a lot of customers, and I get it, everybody’s busy and you forget about somebody’s birthday and it’s last minute. You’d like to get a cake. That’s really what I’d like to do. Very simply decorated small cakes that they can walk into our shop and we can provide that for them.”
Hannah Pariseau has been working at The Blue Julep for more than two months. The aspiring entrepreneur is excited for the new location.
“I’m hoping to see that since we’re on the main strip right over there that a lot more customers come in because there are a decent amount of people that live around here and haven’t seen us since we’re right on this corner,” she said.
The COVID-19 pandemic impacted businesses nationwide especially in the food and service industry. But Davenport was able to persevere during the height of the pandemic and continues to thrive.
“Our customer base, they were so supportive,” Davenport said. “They came out and just bought stuff whether they need it or not I think just to make sure we kept the lights on. We were able to and we came up with a few revenue producers that helped us during that time. We actually saw an increase of customers.”
The Kentucky native and former lawyer opened The Blue Julep in 2016.
“I named it after the bluegrass state and the Mint Julep,” she said.
Prior to opening The Blue Julep, she was baking out of her home for several years and the work had taken over her house, so she started looking around.
“I really wanted to be downtown. I liked the energy here,” she said.
Now six years in she’s expanding.
“It’s a great creative outlet. I love it,” she said. “I actually have a science background so it’s the whole chemical reactions scene where it looks like one thing in the beginning and a totally different thing in the end. In terms of the business, I like the fact that it makes people happy.”
The Blue Julep offers up to 13 varieties of cupcakes. They also serve cookies like chocolate chip, peanut butter and no bake cookies. They also make mini-cheesecakes, flowerless chocolate cakes and French macarons.
She hopes to expand hours of operation and potentially open on Tuesdays. Right now they are open Wednesday through Friday 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Saturday 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Davenport plans on moving into the new location by the end of April.
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