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By Christine Graf
\nLake George native Leah Stein worked in the area as a park ranger and environmental educator. She then shifted gears and worked at a bakery in the area. In 2013, she decided to go out on her own.
\n\u201cI grew up in a tourist town with tons of entrepreneurs around me,\u201d she said. \u201cA lot of people had their own businesses, and it was always something that was in the back of mind as an attainable goal.\u201d
\nShe opened Leah\u2019s Cakery, located in the historic West Side General Store building at 3 Curry Street in Round Lake, in 2013.
\nWhen Stein made the decision to change professions, she enrolled in the culinary program at Schenectady County Community College (SCCC). She comes from what she describes as a \u201cculinary inspired\u201d family, and she fell in love with baking as a young girl. It was while making custom cakes as a side job while working in environmental science that she decided to pursue baking full time.
\nWhile still in culinary school, Stein worked part-time making custom cakes at the former Queen of Tarts bakery in Guilderland. After graduating from SCCC 2008, she taught baking courses at the college for six years.
\n\u201cI tried to balance teaching with running the shop, but I went without a day off for over three years,\u201d she said. \u201cI love teaching and would love to get back into it some day.\u201d
\nToday, Stein puts all of her energy into her business. After purchasing the 3 Curry Street property, she spent $50,000 to get her shop up and running. She hired Stein Construction of Lake George, a company owned by her brother David, to do the renovations.
\n\u201cI had to completely gut the space,\u201d she said. \u201cEven though there were four walls, I pretty much had to build it from the ground up.\u201d
\nStein opened Leah\u2019s with the intention of focusing on custom cakes, but she decided to supplement her income by offering coffee and a limited selection of baked goods to walk-in customers. She had no idea that would become the mainstay of her business. In 2017, she put an addition on the building for a 16-seat dining area.
\n\u201cThat really took off a lot stronger than I expected in the beginning. I opened up in a location that really needed that community spot. There weren\u2019t many places to go get a cup of coffee and chat with your neighbor besides Stewart\u2019s,\u201d she said.
\nStein has been overwhelmed by the support she has received from residents of Round Lake. She has lived in the village for the past 18 years and lives with her daughter on the second floor above the shop.
\nStein started out as the bakery\u2019s only employee but now has nine employees including two full-time technically trained bakers. She and her staff make 100 or more special order custom cakes a month. They also make non-custom cakes that can be purchased by walk in customers.
\nCinnamon buns are the bakery\u2019s most popular item, but they also sell a variety of muffins, scones, cookies, and pies. Everything at the bakery is made from scratch
\nNot long after Leah\u2019s Cakery opened, the town of Malta installed a municipal parking lot next to her shop. The parking lot provides access to the Zim Smith Trail, and foot traffic at the cakery has increased dramatically due to its use, she said.
\nLeah\u2019s closed to walk-in customers at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, but reopened in June. While the shop was closed, Stein got an ecommerce site up and running in just a few days. The site allowed customers to place online orders for pickup.
\n\u201cWe were doing all kinds of things when we were shut down,\u201d she said. \u201cWe were making pizza dough. I was selling soup by the quart. We had a variety of different things we were offering.\u201d
\n\u201cOne thing I\u2019ve realized in the baking industry is that no matter what is going on in economy, everyone loves cake and sweets,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Christine Graf Lake George native Leah Stein worked in the area as a park ranger and environmental educator. She then shifted gears and worked at a bakery in the area. In 2013, she decided to go out on her own. \u201cI grew up in a tourist town with tons of entrepreneurs around me,\u201d she […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":196,"featured_media":33763,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\r\n