Baking for health-conscious customers

Modern consumers aren’t looking for just any sweet treat, though–they’re after healthy dessert options. Millennials and Gen Zs, for instance, suffer from more gut issues than any other generation. They also crave sustainability–healthier, locally sourced ingredients–and are willing to pay a premium for it. 

If you’re a cafe or a bakery, you might want to start thinking about providing health conscious options, like gluten free baked goods, and coming up with creative new twists on traditional goods to broaden your customer base and attract more health-conscious customers. Luckily, this post offers some guidance on how you can lean into “little treat culture,” seize on healthy baking trends, and offer healthy baked goods. 

READ: How to open a bakery

Source local 

It can be hard to pick which new menu items to add for your business, but one tip is to prioritize goods that use local ingredients. Take a trip to the local farmers market or grocers to see what your neighborhood has in stock. Pick one or two fresh ingredients, like fruits or veggies, and draw inspiration from social media to try out healthier recipes and healthy dessert options. If your town/city is known for a particular sweet treat, experiment with your new ingredients to create a healthier version. 

Buying locally is a great way not only to build a relationship with suppliers, but to attract customers who value health and sustainability. Emphasize this aspect of your brand on menus, signs, and on the cash register. It can also help you stand out from large chain bakeries and coffee shops. What’s more, you can add seasonal menu items based on the ingredients your local area offers. To keep track of your ingredients, it’s helpful to have an all in-one system that can handle just about everything from inventory check ins to collecting real-time data from interactions with customers. 

Go nut- and gluten-free 

Nuts are a great source of healthy fats and often create rich flavors in pastries. Nuts like walnuts, for instance, are a great source of Omega 3, which can reduce the risk of heart inflammation. Incorporating nuts into pastries like cookies or croissants would be a great way to appeal to health conscious customers.

Since so many young consumers suffer from more gut issues, offering gluten free baked goods that are packed in protein from ingredients like chia seeds could be a great way to reach folks. It’s also helpful to write out what ingredients are in each pastry, keeping folks who may have nut, dairy, or gluten allergies and sensitivities in mind–or even customers who are looking for keto baked goods and keto menu options. Learn more about incorporating healthy ingredients for your bakery here. 

READ: How to create a menu

Get creative with your flavors  

There are a wide range of wonderful pastries, cookies, muffins and cakes out there–although it often seems like every coffee shop or bakery offers the same variety of flavors. Getting creative with flavor combinations for your pastries or goods could help you carve a niche in the market. Draw inspiration from different areas of the world, cookbooks, or popular food bloggers. There’s always a way to incorporate interesting twists of flavors that keep healthy customers coming back for more. 

Flavors like sesame, olive oil, lavender, and matcha are growing in popularity–especially among Gen Z and Millenials–and can be used in healthy baking and in healthy baked desserts. Incorporating some of these flavors could help you stand out. Olive oil ice cream, for example, has recently been trending on Tiktok as a healthier version of ice cream. Plus, it provides customers with rich antioxidants that can help with brain cognition and digestion. Tahini is another popular healthy ingredient that sometimes replaces sugar mixtures in cookies and adds a decadent sesame flavor to foods. It’s also rich in antioxidants and helps lower inflammation in the body. 

READ: Ways to attract new customers to your small business

Let customers be part of the process 

“Little treat culture” is all about taking a break from your day and escaping into a space that allows you to relax. While it’s mostly associated with baked goods and coffee, many consumers are also leaning into other forms of “little treat” activities. So, consider creating an experience for your customers to engage in and help you stand out from other businesses. Aim for more hands-on experiences, like letting customers pipe their own cookie icing designs–with a healthy version of icing, of course. 

Or, you could host themed events based on popular movies or artists. Case in point, every fall on October 5th, coffee shops across North America transform their menu and aesthetic to match that of  “Luke’s Diner” from Gilmore Girls–a popular 2000s TV show. The theme has generated thousands in extra revenue for these small businesses. These kinds of “little treat” activities coupled with a healthy bakery can create happy experiences that keep your customers coming back for more treats.

READ: Ways to make your cafe everyone’s favorite remote work spot

Having a dynamic bakery POS system, like Clover, can help you keep track of inventory, employees, and even customers–and update menus quickly and easily. That’s invaluable when you’re trying out new healthy baked goods, launching a new menu, or hosting customer events. Clover offers a variety of devices to fit your space and helps your business accept all payment types, so you can offer payment options that fit your customers. Even better, the Clover team is available to assist your business with any questions you have. 

Editorial Team

Insights, Quick Service Restaurants (QSR), Run your business

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