How Amazon Launchpad helped cooking startup Bake Mixes feed us during lockdown

Bake Mixes is a health food range developed by Renae Smith, a former Masterchef contestant.

She wanted to develop a range of easy-to-make and healthy treats for time-poor people, from school lunches to afternoon office snacks.

They’re gluten free, vegan so people with food sensitivity issues can enjoy them, and you can customise what you add to deal with dairy, sugar or any other issues.

The baking mixes are Australian made and Smith works with Endeavour Foundation, which supports people with intellectual disabilities, to produce them.  starting with equal access to education and life-skills learning.

During the coronavirus lockdown, Smith developed a $50 “Quarantine Kit” which includes muffin, pancake, muesli bar and bliss balls baking mixes which will last you a month, using Amazon Launchpad, the marketplace for startup brands, to build her business.

“The good thing about Amazon Launchpad is the little amount of work that is needed to keep my products available,” she said.

“It allowed me then to focus on the things that I am good at – growing the business, doing the marketing, doing the PR – rather than sitting there packing orders and trying to manage inventory.”

Amazon Launchpad launched in Australia last year and gives startups and entrepreneurs the ability to tackle one of the biggest challenges they face – bringing a product to market – by enlisting Amazon’s retail expertise and infrastructure to share their stories and grow their businesses.

Amazon Launchpad is also offering Innovation Grants, worth $80,000 each, with entries closing next Monday. You can apply here.

Each package is worth more than $80,000 and includes a $20,000 cash grant, Amazon marketing support, AWS Activate credits, and exclusive access to mentors such as Amazon leadership and entrepreneur experts from Australia and HQ in Seattle; time with successful e-commerce savvy Australian SMBs; and insights from angel investors in the venture capital community.

Amazon Launchpad Innovation Grants applications close on Monday, August 24, at 11.59pm. Applications can be found at Amazon.com.au/launchpad.

The five grant recipients will be announced in September 2020.

Here’s Renae Smith on how Amazon Launchpad has helped her grow Bake Mixes.