Bread and Butter: What a Bunch of Bakers Taught Me About Business and Happiness

by Tom McMakin

Bread and Butter is a book with three First, it's the story of the birth of an extraordinarily successful kind of business called a "freedom franchise": Great Harvest Bread Co., which began as one bakery 25 years ago, is now a $60-million-a-year company with 140 stores in 40 states.

Second, it's the story of one employee's success--the author, Tom McMakin, who was looking for a job and found a lifestyle. McMakin's immersion into Great Harvest is a model for modern entrepreneurship and an inspiration in this age of failed dot-coms and dissatisfied young employees.

Third, McMakin uses GH's experience to provide advice for everyone from dreamers starting their own multi-million-dollar companies to small-business owners to someone who doesn't know what she wants to do. Things creating a "learning community" using email and an extranet; operating without loans, relying instead on profits for reinvesting in the company; GH's "40-hour" rule so no one works more than 40 hours a week; and more. Bread and Butter can help you discover how, instead of living your life in service to the business, you can create a business in service of your life.

Genres: Business

224 pages, Hardcover

First published June 9, 2001

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Again a businessy type book, but a life lessons book as well. The tale is of the author and his experience with Great Harvest, the bakers, the people, and the bread. It espouses the philosophy of the founders of great harvest and then lets the author digest it for us. (Its not pablem, more the author giving his reactions to and struggles with how some have deemed to live their life through the opening of a bread store).

Great Harvest was founded by a couple who where looking for a way to live in Montana. Now that is cool. Admittedly they already had plenty of experience baking bread, but they didn't set up a bakery in their native eastcoast. No, they traveled and decided MT was a great place to stay. Instead of searching for a place to work that they would live, they searched for a place to live that they could work. And from this, some (all?) the philosophy of GH came about. 40 hour work weeks (no more, but 40 actual hours of work).

Not just business philosophy and work practices alone either, but how to live a life merging with what the company does (and not in the sense of the the company taking over your life)

The book almost makes me want to go out and start a great harvest somewhere. Who knows, maybe in a couple years.

Quotes
"Happiness is making progress on who we really want to be, growing toward out more perfect self." (27)
"Who we hang out with is an important ingredient in who we become." (83)

[Jackie Winkler · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is for anyone who is thinking about how to live a better life and how to find joy and meaning in the business world, but finds themselves caught up in "the grind" and all that comes with it. The stories about Great Harvest, its culture and mission confirmed what I already suspected: that Great Harvest is very unique in its approach to creating and running a successful (and profitable!) business. I've taken a lot of these lessons to heart in my ongoing search for harmony and happiness in work and life.

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed it.