Skip to main content

Site Banner Ads

Site Search

Search

Up Here Publishing

Mobile Toggle

Utility navigation

  • Shop
  • Contact Us

Social Links

Facebook Twitter Instagram

Search Toggle

Search

Main navigation

  • Magazines
    • Latest Issue
    • Past Issues
    • Up Here Business
    • YK Guide
    • Move Up Here
  • Sections
    • People & Places
    • Arts & Lifestyle
    • History & Culture
    • Travel & Tourism
    • Nature & Science
    • Northern Jobs
  • Newsletters
  • Community Map
  • Contests
    • Arctic Adventure Sweepstakes
    • Sally Manning Award
  • Subscribe
    • Magazine
    • Digital Edition

Is It Worth 
the Dough?

Up Here Business Issue No. 2

Nicole Mitchell and Zach Biggar both work full-time jobs. They also run a home-based business, making and selling fresh bagels. It takes a bit of juggling, but the side hustle is paying off in more ways than they expected.

By Dana Bowen

Photo by Aaron Tambour

Nicole Mitchell and Zach Biggar have turned bagels into a business

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Is It Worth 
the Dough?

Even after a long week at work, Nicole Mitchell and Zach Biggar don’t cut themselves any slack on Saturday mornings. They wake up early, get out the flour, and start preparing the dough to make 150 bagels—all in one day—for their side-hustle business, Bagels ‘n’ Bites. During the week, the pair work nine-to-five jobs. Mitchell is a recreation program supervisor for the Town of Hay River. Biggar works for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation. They launched their home business in November and, since then, have been inviting Hay Riverites to sign up for orders online. Customers pick up their bagels on Saturday afternoons and enjoy flavours ranging from plain and raisin to cinnamon and jalapeno cheddar. Mitchell says the business is a fun way for the couple to spend time together, though she acknowledges it isn’t easy to manage a home-based business on top of their careers. But as with anything, Mitchell adds, would-be side-hustlers can get the job done. Here, she explains that the key ingredients are organization, time management and practice.

 

What made you and Zach decide to start Bagels n’ Bites? I’m from Ontario [where everything is fairly accessible] and I realized there’s some things you just can’t get here in Hay River. I’ve been up here for just under four years now and I’ve learned that if I want a specific thing, I have to make it.

So, I made bagels about six months ago for the first time. They turned out really good. Zach, who’s a big bagel fan, said, “You know, you could probably sell these.” A few months later, I made them again two weekends in a row. I was like, “Okay, I see your point.” Zach and I started getting into the business around early November. We started making a bunch of bagel batches and tried different recipes. We were tweaking things until we got what we wanted.

 

What’s the process like for running the business outside your full-time jobs? We take our bagel orders on Monday morning through Google forms starting at 10 a.m. Once we reach about 150 bagels— about 25 orders of six—we shut it down because that’s how many we can comfortably make in a morning. And then we close the Google form, get all the ingredients we need for the weekend, wake up early on Saturday, and get going.

 

What has been the biggest learning curve? The first week was a hot mess. We were all over the place. We still got it done and we did a good job with it, but man, we were tired. The next week we got a bit more organized. We got through that weekend a bit more easily and so on and so forth. Now, we wake up and it’s a relaxing, nice kind of morning that we spend together. 

 

What sort of adjustments have you had to make? One challenge is our space. We have a small regular kitchen and a standard oven and a stand mixer… If we ever wanted to do more, we’d need more, but we’re a little limited in what we can do. But we are already looking for a new stove, actually. Like a gas range because it’s a lot more efficient.

 

What have been some of the challenges you’ve faced on the business end? Initially, there were some hiccups with our e-transfers. Sometimes people will copy and paste our email, but then it doesn’t work with the e-transfer for some reason. There are small things like that. Now we have a confirmation email and are slowly building on things like that. We’re modifying or tweaking our stuff bit by bit. 

 

What advice would you give to others who want to start a side business? Our advice is to look around at the people who currently provide services in your town and see if there’s anyone you can work with to both your benefit. We don’t directly compete with other smaller groups or businesses in town because they are our support. Everyone in the town is a team.

Also, start slow. Don’t dive in all the way. We dove in a bit too quickly at the beginning and had to slow down because we took a few too many orders in the first few weeks. But don’t be afraid to challenge yourself.

 

It sounds like a lot of work trying to manage full-time jobs and a side hustle. Why is it worth it to you? It’s just so different from both of our jobs, so it’s a nice change. It’s something we want to do and something we personally enjoy. The biggest draw is just doing stuff together. And honestly, it is something that really motivates us. We get up early and it gives us an extra reason to be up and together. It’s been really nice. We talk a lot. We’re really fulfilled by it. 

Up Here Business Issue No. 2

Sold sign

Scramble!

Real estate markets are hot, with demand outstripping supply in major centres. A case study from Yellowknife shows just how complicated the situation—and its solutions—can be.

By Bill Braden

Photo and Story by Bill Braden

January 28th, 2023 January 28th, 2023

Up Here Business Issue No. 2

Figure stopping blocks from falling

Get Up, Stand Up

The world has survived times at least as difficult as the present. But that’s not the issue. Our challenge today is whether we will let complacency rule the future.

By Don Jaque

Adobe Stock/photo illustration

January 28th, 2023 January 28th, 2023

Related Articles

Up Here Business No. 4

Sean Stofer, Chris Cornboro and Michael Austin—COO, CEO and chief marketing officer

Trail Blazers

ArcticPharm is the first cannabis grower and manufacturer to set up shop in the North. With its dry flower and pre-rolls now debuting on retail markets in the Yukon and Ontario, founders Chris Cornborough and Sean Stofer have more to celebrate than 4/20.

January 28th, 2023 January 28th, 2023

Up Here Business No. 4

Man looking at multiple colourful doors.

A Nuclear Option?

Businesses and developments. Corporations should consider it. Nuclear power is a challenging idea. But small modular reactors may be the surest path to zero-carbon mining in the North. They may also be a big economic opportunity.

January 28th, 2023 January 28th, 2023

Up Here Business No. 4

Ben Perreira at his desk

Let Em' Go

Are you struggling to meet your employees’ demands for more flexibility when it comes to working from home? Neighbourly North’s Ben Perreira is an expert on the subject. He says, relax.

January 28th, 2023 January 28th, 2023

Up Here Business No. 4

Mine worker checking our core samples.

Home Coming

Brandon Macdonald has returned to his roots with Fireweed Metal's Macmillan Pass Project. He's also giving orphaned discoveries a new place to call home.

January 28th, 2023 January 28th, 2023

Up Here Magazine - September/October 2022

Joella Hogan

It Makes 
a Village

Joella Hogan is a savvy business operator who has brought Mayo’s Yukon Soaps Co. to national prominence. She also has a keen eye for turning her entrepreneurial investment into a vital piece of community infrastructure. How so? Hint: Think housing.

January 28th, 2023 January 28th, 2023

Up Here Magazine - September/October 2022

Man standing on road waiting for a bus

We Missed That Bus

Europe needs energy. The North has it. Don’t get excited. 
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has changed the global economic picture for oil and gas. But the stars aren’t lining up to give the North’s much-bruited energy resources one more kick at the development can. If we’re looking for opportunity in the crisis, we need a new idea.

January 28th, 2023 January 28th, 2023
Newsletter sign-up promo image.

Stay in Touch.

Our weekly newsletter brings all the best circumpolar stories right to your inbox.

Up Here magazine cover

Subscribe Now

Our magazine showcases award-winning writing and spectacular northern photos.

Subscribe

Footer Navigation

  • Advertise With Us
  • Work With Us
  • Write for Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclaimers & Legal

Contact Information

Up Here Publishing
4510-50th Ave., Ste. 102
Yellowknife, NT
X1A 1B9  Canada
Phone: 867.766.6710
Fax: 867.669.0626
Email: editor@uphere.ca

Social Links

Facebook Twitter Instagram
Funded by the Government of Canada