Novato Baker Makes the Most Out of Local Connections

Two years ago, Novato resident Stacey Bruno Migale was about to become another victim of the mortgage crisis. Her job with a Novato lender was about to be eliminated, so she began mulling her career options.

Most mornings, she would get coffee at and wish they sold biscotti like her grandmother made. With unemployment looming and a passion for biscotti, Migale was inspired to launch her own business baking and selling biscotti influenced by her grandmother’s cooking. 

Thus, in August 2009 Biscotti Bari was born, and Migale turned lemons into Lemon Poppyseed Biscotti.

Her first commercial customer was Farley’s Coffee in San Francisco and Dr. Insomnia’s soon followed as her fifth customer. Today, Biscotti Bari — named after a city in Italy where she has family roots — is sold in almost 100 locations throughout the Bay Area, including locally at deli and . 

Migale also credits Marin Coffee Roasters with helping her get off the ground in 2009. Since she had no commercial baking experience, Novato resident Tim Mock, owner of Marin Coffee Roasters, let Migale use his commercial kitchen in San Anselmo to get started and learn the ropes of restaurant cooking.

Biscotti Bari is also sold at Andronico’s and Northern California Nordstrom Cafés.  Recently Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s asked Migale for samples, and Starbucks has also expressed an interest in her biscotti.

Family is an essential component of Biscotti Bari. Migale’s biscotti recipes are inspired by her grandmother and made by a cousin in Biscotti Bari’s Petaluma kitchen. Almonds from her family’s Fresno orchard are used to make the Authentic Almond Biscotti.  All of Biscotti Bari’s ingredients come direct from the local farms and producers. 

In addition, Migale has something of a symbiotic relationship with some of her suppliers.  Her chocolate supplier, TCHO Chocolate in San Francisco, sells Biscotti Bari at its Pier 17 factory.  Her olive oil supplier, Bari Olive Oil (no relation), also sells Biscotti Bari. 

Until last month, Migale was hands-on in the kitchen and baked alongside her two employees. “There’s passion when you’re making things yourself,” she said. Now, however, Migale is focused on growing her business and doing in-store demonstrations and attending trade shows whenever she’s not picking up a load of pistachios from the grower.

Migale’s philosophy is “Start with the freshest ingredients possible, craft each batch of biscotti by hand, and don’t forget to enjoy the process.”  Also, don’t forget to enjoy the biscotti.

BUSINESS SHORTS

Social Media Classes for Job Hunters

Looking for a Job? Beginning tonight, Tuesday, Feb. 22, the presents a series of three free classes designed to teach you how to best use social media in your hunt.

The classes are: “Facebook For Job Seekers,” “Finding Jobs on LinkedIn and Monster.com,” and “Organizing Your Job Search with Google Docs.” Attend one class or all three. 

After tonight's session, the others classes will be March 29 and April 26 from 7:15-8:30 p.m. Pre-registration is required. For more information, contact the Novato Library Reference Desk at 415-897-1142.

Outdoor Art Outlet Open to the Public

GardenArt.com, online purveyor of outdoor decorations popular throughout the West, is owned by Novato residents Jason and Molly Davis. Materials such as glass, resin, wood, metal and recycled materials are all used by the artists who provide works for GardenArt.com. 

Did you know GardenArt.com also has an outlet store in Novato?  At 65-N Hamilton Drive, the general public can walk in and purchase items from the web site at discounts ranging from 10-50 percent off the retail price. 

Certified Coach Improves Employee Productivity

Linda Benn & Co. recently announced a suite of services and techniques providing corporations and small businesses with ways to increase productivity and reduce employee stress. Benn, a certified trainer and coach, provides companies with a free assessment to determine where there might be productivity issues. Based on those findings, a  “5 R” program (release, realign, restore, rebalance and re-energize) is designed to tackle those issues.

Benn, a native Australian, shares her cultural experiences, including the Australian “no worries, mate” philosophy, to overcome issues in the workplace by sharing a mindset of possibility, collaboration and productivity. For details, check  www.lindabenn.com.

BioMarin Releases Financial Reports

Novato’s announced a fourth quarter 2010 net loss but an overall increase in net income compared to the previous year. BioMarin’s GAAP net loss for the fourth quarter of 2010 was $12.2 million, compared to GAAP net income of $4.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2009. GAAP net income for the year ending Dec. 31 was $205.8 million compared to GAAP net loss of $500,000 for the year ending Dec. 31, 2009.

"We have made significant progress on advancing our pipeline and remain committed to investing in future growth in the coming years," said Jean-Jacques Bienaime, BioMarin's chief executive.