Sisters cook up something sweet at their new bakery
The aroma of desserts welcomes customers as they walk into one of Bartlett's newest businesses — Jaybear Bake Shop.
The bakery is nestled between Memphis Mojo Cafe and First Metropolitan Financial Services in the Stage Coach Collection III shopping center.
The shop celebrated its grand opening May 26, with games, door prizes and treat samples.
For sisters Courtni Johnson and Jami Harbin, the opening fulfilled their dreams of becoming business owners.
"It's a passion project for me, and we always talked about owning a family business," Johnson said. "We have chefs in our family who cook and bake, and we've learned from them for years, so we really wanted to bring the family dream into fru-
ition."
The name of the bakery also has a family tie — Jaybear is their nephew's nickname.
"We decided to name it after him because he was born at the time that we were thinking about this and creating it and he came out like this chubby little bear, and it was a cute nickname," Harbin said.
Johnson's and Harbin's nephew, Jay, 6, also has a love for cooking and baking.
"Last Christmas or the Christmas before, he got a mini cooking set because he said he wanted to cook like his aunts," Harbin said.
Johnson said placing the shop in Bartlett seemed fitting.
"We're people of faith, and I have always felt that there was a tug from God saying, 'This is the area where we were going to be in,'" Johnson said.
Johnson and Harbin also said their mom works as a Bartlett postal worker and their family lives in the area.
The bakery offers cupcakes, cookies, custom cakes and special features, such as candy apples, fruit jams and chocolate treats, among other items.
"We create all the time and play a lot with different flavors, not just our staples, like red velvet and strawberry, which are the most popular," Johnson said. "We also offer vegan vanilla and chocolate, and gluten-free chocolate. We play to a wide range of people in the communities and their preference of palate."
In addition to pleasing their customers' taste buds, the sisters hope to help the community and motivate others to open businesses.
The sisters' goal is to change the culture and the next generation, so they can become aware of opportunities.
"I am very excited about the opportunity to offer scholarships and internships," Johnson said. "We want to partner with Agape, Memphis Mayor Academy, and MIFA, and other homegrown organizations that want to do good things in the city."