Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexis Krcelic.
Hi Alexis, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
Since I was a young child, I knew I would own a bakery. Life took many different turns but at the end of the day, food remained one of the most important things to me. As well as spreading joy and making a difference. In January 2020, the Australian wildfires ravaged rural areas leaving people and animals with little left. I knew I wanted to raise more money than I was able to give on my own and so I baked. We got over 50 orders of banana bread in 2 days. Then when George Floyd was murdered that summer, I baked again. I find baking to be very therapeutic. You put in materials and you know what you are going to get out. It helps me to have a sense of peace and control when the world around me is so chaotic. I remember having the same crisis of self we were all having in 2020. That was when I decided to pursue my constant love for baking and reimagine my childhood dream of owning a bakery. From there, basta. was born. I structured basta. so, we gave money away every month to charity and got to choose a different one each month. Our whole mission is to save the world with vegan dessert. The virtual doors flung open on October 1, 2020, and I have grown the vegan bakery to have a team of amazing bakers to help go from an I do everything alone to we bake everything you see. Now we are working on our location to open in downtown Greenville so everyone can have access to a delicious dessert that is changing the world.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Is anything worth doing a smooth road? It has not been easy by any means but before I explain why to know that it has always been worth it. I have made plenty of mistakes. I have said the wrong thing. I have over-committed myself. I had breakdowns 30 minutes before I had to bake for a market and begged my sister to let me just skip it. I have sacrificed weekends, months, and special events for basta. But I keep going. Because the world needs basta. It needs to spread more joy through dessert. It also needs to be an advocate in the world and hopefully inspire more people and companies to speak up and use their voice and platform to make real sustainable change in the world. So, despite all the tears, back pain, and sacrifices, I’d do it again and again. And I am.
As you know, we’re big fans of basta. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
basta. is an all-vegan bakery that creates delicious dirty desserts and gives money away? I want people to know that basta. stands up for what is right. It stands up for humans, animals, and the environment. We put our values and ethics first over income every single time. We never want to lose people but speaking up and sparking change is far more important than a sale any day. We specialize in different flavors of banana bread every month but we also make cookies, cakes, brownies, blondies, cheesecakes, you name it. We do a lot of gluten, soy, and nut-free desserts as we believe dessert should be for everyone! We hope to create a safe place for everyone to enjoy life through food, together.
What makes you happy?
Baking. Cliche, right? But thank goodness it’s the truth. Also traveling and eating. I quite literally can never get enough food international travel is a huge part of my life and I have made sure that when I build basta.’s location I don’t lose that because it makes me a better person for actually getting to see how others behave, live, love, and eat.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@bastabakery.com
- Website: bastabakery.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/bastabakery
- Facebook: facebook.com/bastabakery
Image Credits
Clare Blumberg
Savannah Bockus
