Sweet Opportunities
By Julie Duffin
Appears in the May 2024 issue.
Naperville bakery has a successful recipe for its employees with special needs
Wonderfully made treats by wonderfully made people. That’s not just a tagline—it’s an apt description of what you’ll find at Moose & Me Baking Company (3075 Book Rd.), a Naperville nonprofit bakery that employs adults with special needs.
“The idea for Moose & Me came after we adopted our daughter, Mila [nicknamed Moose]. She was born with Down syndrome and at a young age absolutely loved baking with me in the kitchen,” says Megan Elder, founder and executive director. “Because my husband and I had been involved with the special-needs community, we knew that once kids graduated from the school system there weren’t a lot of inclusive opportunities for them. We tried to think of a way we could marry these two things together, and that’s how Moose & Me came about.”
Elder launched the business in her kitchen during the 2020 pandemic. “We hired two employees and started working a couple of days a week filling orders from our Facebook posts, and it just snowballed from there,” she says. After three years, they were ready to move to a commercial location. “The whole goal was to have an inclusive environment that enabled positive interactions between the community and our employees.”
And that’s what’s been happening ever since the bakery opened its storefront last November. Elder says her employees’ favorite thing is hearing the door ring. “They love to socialize. They’ll come from the back of the kitchen just to see who’s here. They love to know who the cookies and cakes are for and the whole story behind why they’re making them.”
In addition to selling baked goodies like cookies, cupcakes, brownies, and custom cakes, Moose & Me offers a DIY cookie bar where customers can select the type of frosting and toppings they want on their cookies. The shop also sells take-home DIY cookie kits.
Elder and her husband, Justin, both grew up in Naperville. “We wanted to build this business here because Naperville has such a great school system for people with special needs. We want to continue that experience and add to the community as much as possible,” she explains.
As a nonprofit business, volunteers help run the store alongside paid employees. Moose & Me also relies on donations to help offset operating costs.
“Our goal is for our employees to feel safe, welcomed, and loved when they are working here. We want them to feel purposeful and successful,” Elder explains. “My hope is to have a full storefront where we make people’s days better. I think everybody who comes in here leaves with a smile.”
Photos: Moose & Me
