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**Business, Local**
Posted by maccnewsattack ⋅ February 7, 2013 ⋅ Leave a comment
by. David Krusemark
Columbia, Mo-U Knead Sweets, a family-owned bakery, opened last September half a block west of Ninth Street in downtown Columbia.
Helena and Allen Shih, the owners of U Knead Sweets, founded the shop after working at Yen Ching’s in Jefferson City. Erica Shih, their daughter, balances helping at the shop with her studies at the University of Missouri. She was with her mother when the idea was first conceived.
“We were walking downtown a few years ago, and we saw the building was up for lease,” she said.
Helena had long dreamt of running her own bakery. After a short period of consideration, the family committed to opening the shop.
“They put everything into it,” said Shih of her parents.
The deadline for opening was set for the weekend of last year’s Roots & Blues festival, in anticipation of greater traffic. Preparation was rushed, but they found success.
“We got a lot of good business that way,” she said.
Since their opening, business has been fairly regular. The wide variety of customers are often brought in by word of mouth. Shih has overheard discussion regarding “the new bakery downtown” when walking about campus. Regular visitors also include locals making large orders for their office breakfast.