It’s a familiar narrative – trying on one career trajectory for size only to realize it doesn’t fit at all. In 2010, while studying education at UW-Milwaukee, Amy Gorski found herself in that very situation. She didn’t have the same passion for teaching as she did for baking. In time, that passion became a business plan.

Last summer, Gorski’s East Side bakery, Poppy, opened with door-crashing lines and the pickings slim well before closing time. “We are aiming to be kind of like your everyday sweet treat, breakfast pastry, and then also your bread loaf for dinner,” says Gorski, brioche-ing her way into the fabric of our community.

Bakeries serve a purpose larger than feeding a physical need. If only for a little while, they soften the sharp edges of life. And life has a lot of sharp edge

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