Texas cravings
Bird Bakery’s Elizabeth Chambers shares her influencer secrets at Galleria Style Summit
Elizabeth Chambers is in Houston for only 24 hours, and she’s on a tight schedule.
The San Antonio native and Bird Bakery founder flew in on a Saturday morning — “It was 82 degrees at 8 a.m.!” — to deliver Create & Cultivate’s keynote address during its third annual Galleria Style Summit for women entrepreneurs looking to make the most of social media.
The next day, she’ll touch down in New York for another one-night-only stay. That’s where her husband, actor Armie Hammer, is preparing for his role in Young Jean Lee’s Broadway play “Straight White Men.” Opening night is Monday, which Chambers will miss because she’s off to sail the Mediterranean with some girlfriends; the high-profile group includes Tot founder Nasiba Adilova, Man Repeller blogger Leandra Medine and fashion designer Rosie Assoulin. But first, Whataburger. “It’s always my first stop,” Chambers says, almost apologetically, of her Bayou City must-do. At one point, her family almost moved into a nearby neighborhood, so she knows her way around. “I’ve also got to get some Tex-Mex and barbecue while I’m here. And a margarita.”
It’s a tall order, considering her itinerary. Tucked away inside the acclaimed restaurant Nobu before business hours, she’s a stone’s throw from her Westin Galleria hotel room and the revamped Saks Fifth Avenue wing, where some 300 aspiring entrepreneurs eagerly await Chambers’ remarks. It’s hard to imagine her escaping the mall without causing a commotion.
At 5 foot 10 inches with a cascading brunet ponytail, the former model is impossible to miss — especially in her striped one-shoulder mini-dress; she cuts a striking figure in a sea of shorts and flip-flops. During a pre-speech photo shoot, Chambers worries that the cut of her Zimmermann frock is too loose and asks if there’s time for an outfit change before her big talk.
Chambers has nearly 200,000 Instagram followers double tapping her every move and a sold-out Houston crowd ready to Facebook Live her every word. For mere mortals, the weight of expectation would be stifling.
But Chambers is unruffled. Despite being a seasoned celebrity wife, she’s also a “Texas girl” and likes to keep it real.
“My makeup artist had her work cut out for her,” Chambers confides, whipping out her iPhone to reveal evidence of a facial gone wrong. “The only thing that covers me up is Clé de Peau concealer.”
She glides easily between topics, sharing her favorite beauty products (“cold fusion cream and Jurolique’s foaming face wash”), accessories (“gold coins, gold hoops and stackable bracelets”) and what Hammer adores most about the Lone Star State (“the open road — he grew up in Dallas and loves a Texas road trip) with equal enthusiasm. Relatability is the reason Create & Cultivate founder Jaclyn Johnson asked Chambers to headline the Houston Style Summit in the first place; the pair originally collaborated during SXSW 2018.
Chambers’ candor is refreshing. Ask her about starting a business, and she’ll shoot it straight.
“It’s the most difficult thing I’ve ever done,” she says with a good-natured eye roll. “There are a million reasons to quit and only one to keep going. So many tears and challenges in the beginning. Now nothing surprises me anymore.”
She always wanted to open a bakery. While she was growing up, her mother and grandmother each had brick-andmortar stores in San Antonio.
Later, as an adult and selfprofessed sugar addict, Chambers struggled to find a fresh, local bakery to satisfy her sweet-tooth cravings when she visited her hometown.
“I needed a cupcake with real buttercream that was made this morning,” she recalls. “My dad was like, ‘We don’t have that here.’ ”
So Chambers and Hammer took matters into their own hands. Their premier Bird Bakery location opened its doors in 2012 on Broadway, right down the street from where Chambers’ grandmother had run her catering company.
In fact, a number of Bird Bakery menu items, including two popular pimento cheese dishes, are her grandmother’s recipes.
“Seeing customers enjoy the recipes I grew up on is the most rewarding part,” she says. “It’s important that it all feels organic. My brand is me, and I think of the Bird Bakery culture like editing a magazine. What do I want my publication to look like?”
For the couple’s second store in Dallas’ Highland Park Village, nailing the right aesthetic meant installing well-lit vignettes for bloggers — and an Instagram wall.
Create & Cultivate’s Style Summit follows that lead. Moments before Chambers takes the blush-velvet stage, a mix of established influencers — including Carrie Colbert and Courtney Kerr — mingle with ambitious hopefuls against various filter-friendly backdrops. There’s a foliage covered stepand-repeat, color-blocked cocktail bar and plenty of Bird Bakery goods to sample.
Chambers says her next move is expansion.
“My goal is to be on food shelves,” she says. “Whether that’s a direct-to-consumer service or stores on every corner. You can’t ship a cake, but can you ship the mix and icing with some instructions.”
Chambers can sort out the details later. Right now, she needs a solution to her wardrobe malfunction. Her public relations handler offers to pin down the offending sleeve, to which Chambers encourages, “Go for it!”
The clock is ticking. She’s got a speech to deliver and Tex-Mex to scout.