We’re looking forward to introducing you to Christina Wilson. Check out our conversation below.
Christina, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What is a normal day like for you right now?
I’ve been working the graveyard bake shift for about 4 years. I wake up around 6:30pm and jump right into baking. Over the course the evening I mix, shape, bake and package orders for our wholesale clients and farmers markets. Shifts usually end around 9am, and I like to unwind with reading, listening to podcasts, or playing video games.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Christina Wilson, and for the past 5 years I’ve been working alongside my husband, Jesse Hellen-Lloyd in our home bakery. Hey Brother Baker started as a hobby while we both worked in the music industry. When the COVID 19 pandemic began we lost most of our work, so we invested everything into making this hobby a business. We are now on the path to opening our very own brick-and-mortar in Long Beach, joining some incredible places like Gusto and Colossus. We are very proud to be featured on menus across the city of Long Beach, and to be participating in local farmers markets 5 days a week.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What part of you has served its purpose and must now be released?
Working the graveyard shift allows me a lot of time for self reflection, and working through some things that I might have been putting off addressing. My former life as a musician was pretty busy. Days were full with teaching, commuting, rehearsing, performing… always engaged in something. I think the part of me that desired to create allowed me to have so much ambition to succeed, and now it can be released, or perhaps evolve into a desire to explore and expand on how and what I consume from literature to art, music, and film.
When did you last change your mind about something important?
In April of 2020 I made the decision to start pulling back from my career as a musician and dedicate time to helping run Hey Brother Baker. I did my best to continue virtual lessons, and eventually return to the classroom, and it became a struggle to balance the two different areas of my life. Changing career paths was unexpected, so it really took some time (and tears) to realize that this new opportunity to build an business and work with my partner to feed the community is exciting. And scary. And extremely exciting.
Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
They would say my family. These shifts make visiting family difficult, so my heart is missing them a lot more. It makes the holiday season extra meaningful, and I really want to be present during those visits no matter how exhausted I might be.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: What light inside you have you been dimming?
I think a lot about the younger versions of myself. I think about what they might’ve really enjoyed, and how the current version of myself has made excuses for why those things aren’t enjoyable any longer. It’s been a rewarding practice to work through allowing myself to enjoy all the parts of my personality.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heybrotherbaker/
Image Credits
Patrick Claytor
