Miggy’s Bakes grows from an online side project to a brick-and-mortar shop

Before Miggy’s Bakes founder Shelby Olstad became a familiar fixture at Madison-area pop-ups and farmers’ markets, the face of the company was Miggy herself — Olstad’s canine best friend.

The company began as an online side hustle for Olstad, who founded it, with some trepidation, in 2019 as an economics major at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In the last five years, its sales have grown tenfold.

“I’ve always loved to bake for as long as I can remember, and I got more serious about it in college,” said Olstad. “I made an Instagram page just so I could post what I was doing, and … I didn’t want anyone to follow it! I didn’t want anyone to see what I was doing — it was just for me. And so I named it after my dog, thinking that no one would know.”

To her surprise, Olstad said interest in her products exploded, and her fledgling business soon became a full-time commitment with its own website and a loyal local following. Miggy’s sells cakes, cookies, bars and more — including gluten-sensitive options — online and from its Middleton storefront, which also hosts baking classes and events.

“I got a job right out of school, working for a startup from 9 to 5 … but I was doing Miggy’s at night, in the morning, on weekends, as much as possible,” said Olstad. “It was hard. It’s hard to only be doing work all the time.”

She said that, ironically, the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent shutdown helped her baking business generate momentum when she was working from home.

“In 2020, tons of small businesses, tons of bakeries popped up all over because people were baking at home, so mine gained a lot of popularity during that time,” she said. “(My employer) called us back in April, and I lasted one week. I quit to do Miggy’s full time. I was like, ‘I can’t go back to being in an office in a cube.’”

In the interim, Olstad moved in with her parents and rented kitchen space at Marigold Kitchen, where for just under two years she was able to operate inexpensively using shared equipment.

By June 2023, Miggy’s had expanded to 25 employees and was ready for its own brick-and-mortar location at 6712 Frank Lloyd Wright Ave. in Middleton.

Olstad said keeping overhead low at Marigold helped her manage costs and save money for the big move, which was also aided by an SBA loan.

But it was tougher, she said, to prepare for other aspects of running the bakery independently.

“When I rented at Marigold, if something happened, I could just tell someone and they would fix it. Suddenly, I (was) like, ‘Oh crap, I’m in charge of all this stuff!’ So that was hard to get used to,” said Olstad.

“And then staffing … was a huge learning curve as well … and just creating systems for an operation like this, because I didn’t go to school for it or anything. I had never worked in a bakery.”

While learning the bakery business has had its challenges, running Miggy’s has also hatched opportunities for Olstad to embrace her creative side and connect with the community.

“We had live reindeer here in December … we (had) the Easter Bunny … but our princess days are probably what we’re best known for,” said Olstad. “We’ve had kids (lining up) down the block and around the entire building. … I had wanted to do that for years.”

Miggy’s princess days feature meet-and-greets with iconic princesses like Cinderella, along with themed activities and desserts.

Olstad also participates in pop-ups and farmers’ markets, including the Epic Farmers’ Market in Verona, the SAUCED Night Market, the Wisconsin Grown-Up Book Fair at the Sylvee, the Paoli Christkindlmarket, the Madison and Milwaukee night markets and several others.

In fact, she said Miggy’s did 70 market setups, including multiday events, in 2025.

“Even before the storefront, I was so heavy on pop-ups because I was like, if we ever are able to get a store, I want everyone possible to know about us,” said Olstad.

“Miggy’s Bakes is a really popular Madison Night Market vendor, and definitely one that people seek out,” said Matt Tramel, executive director of Madison’s Central Business Improvement District, in a statement. “They’ve been a vendor for the past three years and typically see long lines at their booth. … We’re always excited to see the growth of Madison Night Market vendors.”

Sarah Freeman, founder of the SAUCED Night Market, added, “(Miggy’s) treats are always very popular at the markets and often sell out. This year, we’re looking forward to having them introduce some special, market-exclusive items that really showcase Shelby’s creativity and enthusiasm for the local, small business community.”

Miggy’s has retained a strong online following, Olstad said, with 17,569 unique website visitors in 2025 and over 25,000 Instagram followers.

Many of the company’s early staff have remained as well, which Olstad said feels very rewarding.

“(I love) seeing the growth in them and becoming close to them,” she said. “It feels like a family, and we really care about each other. … I’ve had kids that started (working) for me as sophomores in high school that are now in college, and I just adore them.

“And then (I’ve loved) meeting other business owners. Most of my friends are small business owners that I’ve met along the way. … Supporting each other through that (process) is very cool.”

Olstad said the local response to Miggy’s has been more than she could have imagined, and while she hopes the business will continue to thrive, she’s had other priorities — like getting married — this spring, so expanding the bakery hasn’t been top of mind.

“We’ve always been pretty busy,” she said. “It’s been consistently growing steadily — more than I thought it would!

“I used to be extremely growth-heavy, like, ‘I need another location. I need this. I need that’ … but I’ve … put a pause on that side of my brain.”

Reflecting on her experience growing Miggy’s over the last seven years, Olstad is glad she opted to pursue work that brought her joy.

“My advice (to prospective entrepreneurs) would be, just start as soon as you can,” she said. “I started out and I was embarrassed. I didn’t want anyone to know what I was doing … but if I wouldn’t have done that, people wouldn’t have seen (what I could do).

“I don’t know what I would be doing if I didn’t try that, so just start and then see where it goes. You don’t have to know all the answers right away.”

On the web: miggysbakes.com

See photo gallery here.