The decision to stop wholesale production of her Just Delicious Scones last month was incredibly difficult, but something Jennifer Colombo admits she should have done two years ago.

“It hurts me to have had to make a decision,” said Colombo. “I wanted to take care of everybody, I wanted to keep doing it, and I did it way too long; I waited way too long to make the choice until I had to.

“I should have stopped two years ago if I had evaluated how little we were making and was it worth it; but I just couldn’t because I have family as my staff and customers I adore.”

Colombo had been considering curtailing her wholesale business, but made a commitment in December to make sure all of her customers had the stock they needed to get them through the holiday season. She made over 200,000 scones for her wholesale customers that month and planned to make a firm decision regarding her wholesale business early in the new year.

“On Dec. 31 our most important piece of machinery in the bakery caught on fire,” Colombo said. “So it was back to mixing the scones by hand, bowl by bowl.”

The longtime baker and entrepreneur said the rapid changes to the business climate that started with the COVID pandemic in 2020 have impacted many small businesses and forced owners to rethink their business model. The balance she had for years between wholesale, retail and restaurant began to go askew.

Colombo started making and selling her scones more than 30 years ago at her Grosse Pointe Cup-A-Cino coffee shop. That evolved into Just Delicious Scones retail bakery, also in Grosse Pointe, and then to the Royal Treat Tea Room in Roseville and eventually the Pink House Tea Room in New Baltimore.

Colombo opened a bakery and retail spot in St. Clair Shores in 2022, but closed it a year later and moved all baking operations to Roseville. The Royal Treat Tea Room closed last year and baking is now done at the New Baltimore location.

“When COVID first hit, we were grateful for wholesale because there was really only wholesale there really was no restaurant,” said Colombo. “There were a lot of people to take care of and it was OK, but it wasn’t great.”

Colombo said she took advantage of federal government loans available to small businesses just to stay afloat during the time she was not able to open her restaurant locations. She said that helped to keep her going, but that she was not really making money during that time.

“The wholesale business changed dramatically after that,” said Colombo. “I have friends in wholesale who are working with margins of 3%. I can’t take care of brick and mortar, staff and overhead with 3% — it just doesn’t work.”

Prior to COVID, Colombo said it cost her $1.50 to produce a six-pack of scones that she sold for $3.75.

“Then prices changed and labor changed and all of a sudden it was a dynamic where we were $5 wholesale and the stores were really having a rough time with $7.99 because that is not their margin; their margin is between 60 and 80%.”

The past year has been extremely difficult for Colombo in terms of inflation and trying to procure the premium ingredients she uses for her scones such as chocolate from Germany, almonds and eggs that in some cases have more than doubled in price.

“I knew that if I raised my prices nobody would buy them in the end because it would be too expensive,” said Colombo. “You’re talking $11 or $12 for a six-pack of scones and I wouldn’t buy that for that price.”

Colombo started to weigh the exposure her Just Delicious Scones were getting by being in 45 specialty markets throughout the area against being able to sustain her overall business model and growing offerings at the New Baltimore restaurant and retail location.

It was actually the success of the Pink House Tea Room in New Baltimore that made it clear to Colombo that the wholesale business was no longer viable.

“We had the most successful year last year that the Pink House has ever had over the past few years and Just Delicious Scones took all of the money,” said Colombo. “So basically, the scone wholesale business took the money that we made at the Pink House just to sustain it so that now, I’m hurting my new business.”

Scaling back and focusing on the Pink House Tea Room has allowed Colombo to get back to making her handmade, heart shaped, hand frosted scones and back away from the mass production of wholesale that forced her to change the shape of the scones to squares because that shape is much easier to produce quickly than a heart.

“It was kind of like you changed your brand from a heart to a square, which sounds dumb to most people but it was a big deal,” said Colombo. “A 30-year heart scone had to be a square because I couldn’t make the heart-shaped scones fast enough.

“I want the scones to be well done, beautifully glazed and not in a hurry; I want them to be a little more gentle.”

Last week, Colombo put up a Facebook post announcing her decision to cease wholesale production. She made the post just before going into a local basketball game and when she saw the responses — both the outpouring of support and in some cases anger and criticism — it brought her to tears while she was sitting in the bleachers.

“It wasn’t what someone said exactly that made me cry, it was more that they have no idea what is going on and that hurts,” she said.

The following day, she made a longer social media post explaining in detail the reasons for her decision and the challenges her business has faced since 2020.

“I wanted to share from my heart what was really going on,” said Colombo. “What came out of that was the community protecting a business that they love.”

This week Colombo has seen an influx of longtime customers at the Pink House Tea Room showing their support and getting their fix of their favorite flavor of scone.

The Pink House Tea Room, located on Front Street, offers a stunning view of Anchor Bay and serves specialty coffees and pastries at breakfast, lunch including quiche, scones and other pastries, after school milk and cookies for kids, and a Friday night menu that includes a variety of specialty cocktails with classic Motown music playing.

Fans of the Royal Treat Tea Room will recognize some of the artwork, fine china and furniture from the Roseville location nestled into the rooms of the historic Pink House.

“I think I’ve finally found a place that I can rest,” said Colombo. “When you are in a community, your business is about the people and it has been that way since the day I started; I get all of my love and energy from my customers.”

Fans of Just Delicious scones can rest assured, they will still be available. They can be ordered directly from the justdeliciousscones.com website or purchased at the Pink House. Colombo is also finalizing plans for a coffee house and small bakery adjacent to the Grand Pacific House Museum a block away from the Pink House on Washington Street.