Eddie’s Energy Bars Blog

The first week of classes have gone by, and it’s definitely going to be a busy semester for me.  Time management is going to be crucial for me over the next few months.  Vacations are going to be business trips back home, as that is all I will be doing.  Don’t get me wrong though.  I love what I am doing, and want to see it grow.  Now, with the help of good ol’ eBay, we can make things start to happen.

One of the longest processes for us is packaging of our bars.  Since our old heat sealer (which gave us about two years of work) bit the dust, we have been looking for an upgrade.  I called around to some companies asking advice on what I should get.

At first, I was set on upgrading to a foot powered heat sealer, which would enable us to package with both hands.  I was then turned on by a salesperson to a continuous band sealer (What the heck is that?). Well, basically, it’s a machine that seals nice and tight across plastic materials.  This will eliminate the need to fold the bag on the open end and seal by hand–that’s a lot of time when we are baking 300 bars a day by hand!  Now, with this machine, we will be able to seal up to 120 bars a minute! We will still do everything else by hand, except for sealing the package.

I found the band sealer on eBay for a whopping $1,400 less than other companies wanted for it.  I am pretty excited about the find.  I made this purchase for a couple of reasons.  We’re growing at a rapid pace, and need to save time where ever we can.  Secondly, as you all know, I am a college sophomore and I do all I can to help my parents out, since they are doing the baking and distributing of Eddie’s Energy Bars.  I figured this purchase will help us in both the short and the long run, on our way to Eddie’s becoming a more well known brand.

We’ve got lots going on at our bakery in Richmond, Vermont. Stay tuned for many more happenings.

Michael, Owner
Eddie’s Energy Bars

I have been getting calls and e-mails left and right for huge orders lately.  The most recent was an order for 5,000-10,000 custom labeled energy bars for a promotion a California company was putting on.

We just can’t do that with our home bakery.  My parents would have to work day in and day out, and maybe even take a couple of days off.  I don’t want them to have to do that.

In regards to a bigger space, we have already started looking for alternatives to producing our bars in our bakery, but we don’t want to lose the high quality associated with handmade Vermont products.

In a perfect world, it would be great if we could go out in our backyard and pluck $100 bills off the trees to finance a commercial kitchen remodel, but we can’t.

I’m content with our small home bakery, but it can only take us so far. Oh boy, do I dream of a commercial facility one day…

Never lose sight of your dreams.  It will keep you going every day of the week.

Michael Adams, Owner
Eddie’s Energy Bars

Hey All,

I got back late last night, after delayed/mechanical difficulties on the plane from O’Hare to Burlington, VT. Overall, I thought the trip was really amazing, and opened my eyes to a culture I had really never gotten a chance to explore.

The family and I thought that this vacation would be a relaxing one, but it turned out to be absolutely busy because there was just so much to see. We went horseback riding (probably the most relaxing, although I had a bad horse), hiking in the Rockies, around small, very spread out Colorado towns, and an awesome rodeo the last night.

Here are some pictures in a slide show for your viewing pleasure:

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Pretty sweet, huh? I’m helping my sister pack up for her trip down to VA to start her second year of college, and then I’m going to lock myself in the bakery this week, and hopefully get around to make some energy bars. I know I certainly have to ship some this week!

Have a great week everyone!

Michael, Owner
Eddie’s Energy Bars

It is hard to muster up the motivation to bake in humid weather. The hot oven just makes the kitchen like a death zone, almost to the point where I want to go take a dip in the river below our bakery. It’s like my face is going to melt off, trying to bake homemade energy bars in our bakery, but it’s something I’ve got to do.

Ideally, I should probably bake really early in the morning, but like many entrepreneurs, I need my sleep, 7-8 hours to be exact. I might just head down right now and go start baking.

Hope I have all the ingredients that I need!

Michael Adams, Owner
Eddie’s Energy Bars

Hey Everyone,

While baking today, we decided to give a new flavor a whirl.  We had previously made this bar a couple months ago, but it hasn’t really been tested.

The bar contains Parmesan cheese, basil, oregano, sun-dried tomatoes, and diced pepperoni.  Basically, it is a savory bar of sorts.  We have come up with a couple of naming options like the Italiano bar and the Pizza bar.

Do you have any ideas?  Leave a comment below!

Michael Adams, Owner
Eddie’s Energy Bars