Megan: Thank you guys so much for tuning in to SheBoss. This is one that holds a very, very special place in my heart for many, many reasons. but Bailey Erickson with Wafel Bitte  is, joining me today, and we’re surrounded by her delicious waffles. And if you have not tried them, you must crawl out from underneath the rock you are living in and make sure that you get something. So, Bailey. Thank you so much for joining us today. And of course, we are having mimoas but it’s in coffee mugs. Why not? That’s it. Hey, coffee and waffles, you know. so, Bailey has been, we from a fresh perspective and, you know, from the women that we admire in our circle, you have been one that sits at the top for so long. And I’m so honored to call you my friend. not only my friend but someone who, watching her story unfold over the past couple of years, has just been so inspirational and so amazing. And anybody who has seen her out and about in Huntsville and has tasted the most amazing waffles you’ll ever put in your mouth knows what admiration you put into this business. I mean, literally blood, sweat, and tears. And it was something, that upon learning your story with starting this business, was mind-blowing to me because of why you started it, who you started it with. and really what the intent was with why you started it. And now it is taking off like crazy. which is amazing. And it’s sort of like, what do we do with all this? You know, it’s so much excitement. So let’s just dive right in and just share your story a little bit. And we’re going to get to the waffles in just a minute, because, there are so much more than just waffles. There’s a lot more to you. and a lot of people don’t, you know, may not have the opportunity to learn a little bit more about you your story is fascinating, and it’s one that, not to get dramatic, but it’s a little bit gripping at times as well. Truly, as I’ve gotten to know you, I’m like, Holy cow, you are such a powerhouse. so let’s just start from the beginning and kind of share a little bit about your story, where you’re from and kind of what your career path looked like. And then we’ll we’ll talk about some waffles. 

Bailey: All right. I’m from New York, Buffalo, New York, and I have two amazing children. One Christian, he’s an engineer here in Huntsville, and my daughter Alexis is in the Air Force in Germany. I was in the Air Force for four years. And then I went into federal law enforcement for 28 years, and I retired in 2016 from federal law enforcement. I opened a private investigation business called Gemini for five years, and I closed that during COVID-19. My daughter and I were sitting around the kitchen and thinking, of making something that makes people happy. And she always had that entrepreneurial spirit. when there used to be the Madison Square Mall, she would see an open space and she’d say, oh, mama, I want to put, you know, whatever, a bakery in there. So I thought, before she left for the Air Force, I would teach her how to start a business so she would have that skill for the rest of her life. And we had to come up with an idea. And because we spent eight years in Europe before we moved to Madison, we remembered these Belgian waffles. And so we started a little journal and we had, we tried different recipes until we finally wrote down. We nailed it. we adjusted these recipes to where, it was a waffle that we remember, tasting in Belgium. And it’s the Liege waffle. And as you probably know, because I probably have told you, there are two kinds of Brussels or two kinds of Belgian waffles. One is the Brussels waffle, which is a rectangular shaped and they put all sorts of toppings on it. the waffle that we make is the Liege waffle, and it’s from the city of the edge. And they use, pearl sugar and, this pearl sugar here, caramelizes inside the waffle. And, it’s absolutely delicious. It knocks your socks off. Yeah. It’s like a little bite of magic tthat. you just don’t expect you cannot eat another waffle after you’ve eaten these waffles. I gotta say, I think you call them little love drops.

Megan: Last time I talked with you, probably my kids will refuse to eat anything else besides your waffles. From now on, you ruin them. So thank you for that. No, I know now I have some more.

Bailey: So, Alexis and I came up with the idea for the Belgian waffles, and then we. I taught her how to get her business license and how to get the LLC and, QuickBooks and marketing and trying to figure out where we were going to sell them. And that was in September of 2020 during Covid. and then she left for the military in October of 2020. And I really thought that this idea was going to flop and that I could just continue my retirement. But as it turned out, this is an unusual idea, and people absolutely love these waffles, so I just couldn’t give it up. You know, I wanted to continue to make people happy, especially during Covid. So, we continued on through, making these markets. And then people asked us to start making the mix. And I don’t know how far you want me to go into that. Yeah. Yeah. I’m sorry. Yeah, it was hard. So, we started making the mix. We have a commercial kitchen here at Fig Brew, and, if you haven’t had Fig Brew, it’s absolutely delicious. it’s, coffee’s, mellow meat, they call it, because, it’s made out of figs. So it doesn’t mess your stomach up anyway. So delicious. 

Megan: Another Huntsville-based company?

Bailey: Yes. Right. Yes, absolutely. They’re wonderful. so we started making the mix, and people loved it. And then I noticed that a lot of people at markets wanted gluten-free. So we made a gluten-free, mix as well. from there, we started selling in retail stores in the area, and then we have an Amazon store and a Shopify store. We went to Atlanta’s market this past summer, and now we are in stores across the United States, which is just insane.

Megan: Yeah. how many states carry I know? Any idea

Bailey: I’m not really sure. and we recently, were contacted by a company called Van Mauer, and they have 38 stores, and there are more high-end, department stores. And so we are a vendor for them. we are in the Dallas market showroom, permanently on display, available for buyers around the US.

Megan: Yeah. So it’s just exploded beyond what you originally thought it was going to be?

Bailey: Yes, yes, yes. So let me I’m going to ask you a couple of questions. Kind of going back to your career a little bit when you, when you left the federal government and you started your own business with Gemini, what sort of sparked your idea to do that? And what were some of the challenges that you faced when starting that business? And I would love to hear, too, about some of your stories of being a private investigator and your history and what you did previously. At least what you can share of it is pretty fascinating.

Bailey: The last 16 years I spent investigating major fraud against the government. So, major fraud would be more than $100,000, fraud against the government. But usually, the US attorneys wanted us to have cases which we found $1 million or more in fraud. And what we do is we would, you know, work the investigation and, when I was in Europe, I flew into Kosovo quite a bit, and I worked on, large-cap contracts, billion dollar contracts and, different frauds, schemes that were pretty funny. I think I told you my one funny story about flying into Macedonia. I don’t think so. So I had to fly to Kosovo to work on an investigation. And this agent that I was working with, he, I told him, I said the road in between Kosovo and Macedonia, there’s been a landslide, so we cannot drive in there. And he said, “Oh, that’s okay, Bailey, just get air support.”. Yeah. And I said,  “We can just call down there and get air support?”. He said, “Yeah, just call down to Camp Steele and ask for air support.” So I was like, okay, so I called Camp Steele and I said, I need to get into Macedonia. So the guy on the flight line said, oh, okay, just be on the VIP landing pad at 7 a.m.. So we flew into Kosovo on Friday, 7 a.m. we were at the landing pad and we got on this helicopter and flew into Macedonia, and the doors were sliding on this aircraft. And the pilot said, if you see any sniper fire coming up, let me know. And I’m thinking, what is going on here? And then I looked at the agent that, I flew in there with and he said, good job, Bailey. I’ve never seen anybody get air support before. And I said, you have got to be kidding me. And so he just wanted to see if I could do it. So, yeah. So I investigated around Europe, Kosovo, England, the Netherlands, Germany, everywhere.


Megan: Can I ask just more, out of curiosity, what’s been one of the most bizarre fraud cases you’ve been able to identify and and stop? I mean, when I think of fraud against the federal government, I think of, like, tax evasion and stuff like that. Right. Like, what are some of the ones that stand out as maybe highlights or key memories from your career and doing that?

Bailey: I think a guy that was laundering money out of Iraq, he, he set up a scheme where all these trucks had to take supplies to different fobs, different forward operating bases, and he would set up the scheme where the guys would pay him kickbacks as long as they got to take the loads out. And then he brought all this money, back to the United States through five different people. And the only reason he got caught is because everyone thought, how can you afford all these vehicles and all these renovations to your house and all these things? And so he was acting like Mr. Big Guy, and, he got caught. So really, you just catch the stupid ones, right?

Megan: So talk about Gemini. When you started that, how did that kind of come to fruition? And  I mean, starting a business is no easy feat, as you know, what you do now is very different from what you were doing, man. But what are some of the, you know, necessarily stumbling blocks? What were some of the challenges that you faced, and what were some of the things that you learned from that that really influenced you to want to teach Alexis how to also take that path?

Bailey: Well, with Gemini, I basically did the same thing I did as an agent, but as a private investigator. it was kind of like investigating with your hands tied behind your back because you no longer had access to the things that you did as an agent. And, so that was different. And of course, you’re working by yourself.

Megan: Sid you specialize in the same thing?

Bailey:  Kind of, yes. So, whistleblowers would come to the law firm and say, company A is putting this bolt on the Apache and it’s bringing the aircraft down and killing soldiers. So then I would interview everyone involved and put the case together and then go to Birmingham and meet with an assistant U.S. attorney and present it to them. And the agents that I used to work with.

Megan: Wow. Wow. That’s wild. Yeah, that is wild. Did you serve clients that were here mainly in this area or all over the world?

Bailey: Yes, and I didn’t even want to start, but, I, a law firm reached out to me and said, we heard you’re a retired fraud agent, and we need we need your help. And then they said, “Could you come in on Monday?” And I came in on Monday and they said, “How much were you charged per hour?” And I told them and they said, “Okay, your first clients out in the hall.” I mean, out in the hall. Wow. I was not prepared to start, but I just took off from there. Yeah. Yeah. So. Well, it went really well, except that, I learned attorneys don’t pay you. Like, there’s the one attorney that I worked really hard for, and he still owes me almost $40,000. He sends me $300 a month. That’s it. And no one will sue him. No other attorney will sue him because he’s an attorney. And I’ve been to the bar association.

Megan: Oh my goodness.

Bailey: Yeah. So he owes me all this money and I’ll probably die before I ever get it all back.

Megan: Oh, my God, I’m back.

Bailey: But isn’t that crazy?

Megan: Yeah.

Bailey: I spent so much so many hours working for him.

Megan: Wow, that’s mind-blowing. That is mind-blowing. And as a small business owner too, that’s a challenge, right? Because you don’t really know what resources you have at your disposal. And, you know, you’re kind of figuring that out as you go a little bit. Yeah. Oh my goodness that’s crazy. So let’s talk a little bit about Alexis’s journey. If we can. Of course. because I know that, you know, you guys started this together and I had a curiosity. Was this a, a Covid passion project, or did you want to start a business with her regard before that even became a thing? And I know that really, you know, influenced a lot of people to sort of think outside the box and, you know, just come up with different, you know, different ideas to approach challenges that maybe they hadn’t thought about previously. Was that always something that you wanted to do with her before she left for the Air Force, or did COVID sort of spark that for you?

Bailey: COVID sparked it because we were isolated and we were together, and I always wanted to teach her how to start a business before she left because I thought she could carry that skill with her.

Megan: Yeah. And as a business owner yourself, you know that the difference between, you know, between people is people carry all these ideas, these wonderful ideas in their head and they don’t follow through. And if they follow through, they can be very successful. And there are so many places in Huntsville that want you to succeed. Yeah, like the Catalyst Center, the SBDC at UAH. They want to help people. Yeah, take their idea and make it successful. Did you tap into some of those resources you guys were getting started? Talk a little bit about that and what you, what you leaned into. the Catalyst Center for Business and Entrepreneurship had a thing called Boots to Business.

Bailey: So it was for the military, going into small business. So that was a great, start for me. And they were just always there with coaching and, legal and all the different information that they provided to help me move my business forward. Yeah. The Catalyst Center here in Huntsville, which used to be the Women’s Business Center, is, right over by UAH and has a ton of phenomenal resources to help.

Megan: I mean, before starting Flourish, I engaged with the catalyst as well. And they used to have the engage program where I think it was a once a month and you would come in and shout out to Erin Bloxham, Curtis, she was running that program at the time, and now Lisa Mayes is doing a phenomenal job over there as their CEO. And her entire team are fantastic, but they really tell you those things that you don’t know, you know, because you don’t know what you don’t know. Yeah. And I think, for me, I’m coming in and I’m sure with, similar to you where you sit down and you have an assessment and you talk about your challenges and, and you have business coaches say you really need to get a lawyer on your side, where you really need to think about getting an accountant for these reasons, you know, and you just, you know, you don’t know, especially when you lead with an idea as opposed to leading with the desire to be an entrepreneur.

Bailey: But I think there’s a very big difference there. Yes, very big difference there. So, that’s fantastic. Yeah. So the Catalyst Center for Business and Entrepreneurship was great. SBDC over at UAH, a phenomenal organization.

Megan:  Yes, Hillary and her team do such a great job. And, did you leverage any of their resources at all? Well, I guess probably not. At that time which, you know, helping to implement the Pep loans to help and, just sort of figure out like how, you know, not loopholes, but you know, what workarounds, I guess, you know, have an  entrepreneurs space kind of during that time of things that they just don’t know, you know, where they can go.

Bailey: So so many great resources there for sure.

Megan: Yeah. Have you always had a passion for cooking or is it just it and now you find yourself in the kitchen pretty often, right?

Bailey: Yes. But I’ve got Alexa so she, she loves she’s, she wants to start a bakery.

Megan: I was going to say going back to her, her thought about the bakery.

Bailey: Yeah. So this is I mean is it something that she’s, she’s not really doing now obviously because she’s, you know, in the Air Force full time and. Yeah, we did make waffles together last week with the Air Force troops we did in Germany.

Megan: Yeah. That’s fantastic. So you were there last week spending some time with her before the holidays?

Bailey: Yeah>

Megan: . And we talked about there’s lots of Christmas markets over there. lots of Christmas markets here. It is Christmas time here. but so how has that experience? And just kind of getting back together with her and, and kind of bringing back to the roots of where this business came to be.

Bailey: It was great. I’ve been there so many times. I’ve been there five times already since she’s been stationed in Germany. And when my legal name is Erickson-Nichols. And so when I drive through the Air Force base gate, they say, good morning, Mama Nichols. Are you going to make us some waffles this time? So you’ve built a reputation there? Just waiting for the waffles. Yeah. It is just so fun. We made Thanksgiving dinner for them, and, yeah, there’s awesome.

Megan: That was amazing. Yeah. Would. That’s so fun. Yeah. So there’s been a lot of exciting things that have happened with these since you started. you know, I know you’ve gone through a little bit of a rebrand with your packaging and so talk about some of just some of those hurdles that, you know, looking back, what are some things, if any, that you would have done differently. And this is a very, you know, the food industry and retail industry is very unique, very unique. So what have been some of the things that maybe have caught you, caught you off guard, or surprised you or that you’ve kind of learned, like if you were to go back around and do it again, that maybe could help out another business owner in the same position.

Bailey: I don’t think I would have called this business waffle better. It means waffle please in German and everyone locks up. Oh, let’s go get a waffle bite. Yeah. Now, why did I call it that? Yeah, but then there are other people that say, well, it’s perfect. It’s it’s fine. You did great with us. So. Yeah, don’t worry about it. So I would have, I would have thought about the name, but I really did not think this was going to go anywhere. Honestly. Yeah. I just yeah. So, what other things, I’ve learned about pricing for packaging and, you know, a different packaging? Like, I put the U.S. and Belgium on here. The woman-owned a veteran-owned business. Everyone has all these business coaches that I’ve had. They all have different ideas for you. But, yeah, you just have to, I would say, get as much training as possible from the Small Business Development Center at UAH. And Michelle Koski actually did help me quite a bit over there. during COVID, I have a picture of us delivering waffles to her with masks on during COVID.

Megan: Michelle is amazing.

Bailey: Yeah, she was my advisor. she went to the same high school as my sister. She did like, just totally random. We were chatting about that someone day and they went to the same exact high school and graduated the same year. Everything. Like, what are the chances of that? T

Bailey: Yeah, yeah, I love her.

Megan: Her and Hilary are amazing. So shout out to them for sure.

Bailey: Yeah, their team was great. Yeah, yeah. So I know I’ve learned a lot of things about, packaging and I’ve started to learn the word no, because, everybody asks you to do different things and if you are the only one working in the business, you know, you have to learn to limit, I do have other people, of course, working for me seasonally. I have people helping me in the kitchen and at events, doing administrative stuff like putting labels on and this and that. But. Yeah. And you’re having a lot of events.

Megan: Yeah, you do a lot. So talk a little bit about that and how Huntsville’s been supportive of you, in that regard, because there’s a lot of opportunities, I think, that you’ve really leaned into and you’ve seen some great success from that.

Bailey: Right. Yeah. We started at the Madison City Farmer’s Market and Green Street and Mid-City and we just sign up for as many events as we possibly can to get the word out. And, people now have made this a part of their family traditions for Christmas and Thanksgiving. They come up to us, and say, oh, you know, I’m so glad you’re here because I want to make this for Thanksgiving.  You know, we make this every, every Thanksgiving now with our family. And they’ll make the waffles and make a tray, and then they’ll put toppings around, and then everybody gets to put their own toppings. They don’t really need a topping. I don’t need a topping. It is pure perfection as is. In my personal opinion. It is. They’re the best.

Megan: They’re so good. Yeah, yeah. I was telling Bailey before we sat down for this bat not to throw anybody under the bus, but a very, very, very well-known restaurant outside of Nashville. that’s been around forever. Very well known for their biscuits and gravy and chicken fried steak and their James Madison, my daughter, their blackberry jam is what we give her for in her stocking stuffer every year. One of the things, my sister sends me a Christmas gift every year, a big box from this place of different biscuit mixes and waffle mixes and all of that. And we made their Belgian waffles this past Sunday, and it was so disappointing to eat those waffles after eating your waffles. And my kids ask for it all the time. And when you try one, especially when they’re fresh off, I mean, they’re just I mean, there’s something, so special about what you and Alexis have created, not only in the brand itself, but in the actual. I mean, they’re just so good. And, you know, you do. You see a lot of companies, I think, in this space where they make there’s a lot of hype around the brand. And then you’re somewhat disappointed. Right? It’s kind of like, That was all right, you know, not necessarily worth the price or, you know, worth all the hoopla. Yours times ten just level up to the expectation there. And I think the expectation is it just surpasses, I think, what you ever expect. And I mean it’s they’re just so phenomenal that you guys have just like nailed it. And I know you’re technically in retirement, but what is slowing down look like for you? I mean what are the next steps with where this is going to go and what can we expect from Waffle that are moving forward?

BaileyL  Well, we just partnered with Lux Brew Cafe in Madison, and tomorrow I’ll be going over there to, teach them how to make the waffles. And I was there yesterday. I’m like, where the waffle to do it seems like we’re we haven’t started selling them yet, but we’re going to. So we were talking about it for a while. So yeah, they’re waiting for me to come back from. Right. Yeah. So, our goal is to be in coffee shops across the US. So the people are making our waffles fresh and, of course, be on the shelf. I would love to be on the shelf at the defense commissary because so many military members have been in Europe and know these waffles. And when military members try, our waffles are like, this is exactly what they taste like. Yeah. So that makes it all worthwhile. It’s possible that we may have either a food truck or a brick-and-mortar coming up. We’re going to see how that goes. But I know that people love tasting these fresh off the waffle maker so that might be something that happens. Yeah, that is exciting.

Megan: So Retirement’s not in the near very near future for you like you thought it was. Sometimes life just happens, right? Things just happen for a certain reason. It just wasn’t your time. Yeah. So you know, and at the same time, you’re making so many people happy. So thank you for doing that. Yes. So I’m excited because we get a chance to make some waffles and see how this all comes together. And again, I think most people don’t realize the influence and the significance of the sugar pearls because those are little pops of goodness that you just can’t beat anywhere.

Megan: So right. Going to make some waffles?

Bailey: Let’s make some what? Let’s make some waffles. All right, let’s do it. Okay. I hope you ladies are hungry. Yes.