Bean Counter Bakery Owner Alice Lombardi worked as an engineer in the corporate world when she decided to leave to spend more time with her children, back in 1998.
Her employer tried to keep her, enticing her with remote work options long before working from home would become a typical job setup. Still, she said, the balance didn’t feel like enough.
“I am a perfectionist,” Lombardi said. “I’ve either got to do it the right way or no way at all. So I decided to just quit.”
Always an avid baker, she began bringing baked goods to mom groups and coffee hours in her neighborhood. After one mother suggested she sell her treats to local restaurants, Lombardi obtained a residential kitchen license.