Williamstown Man Turning Bread Making Invention Into Dough
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Michael Taylor knew there had to be a better way.For years, Taylor has been baking bread but could never figure out the best way to make it rise. The dough needs to sit in a temperature-controlled environment and maintaining that temperature was always the trick. Taylor, a mechanical engineer, tinkered with many options before coming up with a "proofer" and now he's turning his invention into a business.
After years of development, Taylor has launched his Brod and Taylor bread proofer for those kneading artisans who have struggled with the same rising problem. The appliance is an electronic, temperature-controlled plastic bread box that can be folded and easily stored.
"Forever people are looking for that warm place for the bread to rise because it's a yeast-growing process and it needs a temperature around 85 degrees and it's difficult to find a place like that, particularly in the winter time," Taylor said while showing off his invention on Friday. "In professional baking, they have all kinds of equipment for that but there has never been anything like it for the home."
Around the same time, the recession started and the company where he worked sunk to near bankruptcy: Taylor was out of a job. Loving his Williamstown home and not wanting to leave, the marketing executive decided to start manufacturing the proofer rather than search far afield for work.
"If I knew then what I know now about the complexity and cost of actually creating a marketable home appliance, I don't know if I'd have ever done it," said Taylor, who holds an engineering degree from the University of Florida.
After securing a patent, Taylor then spent a year and a half trying to get the product manufactured locally but was unable to make the finances work. He would have had to charge nearly $600 because the infrastructure to build the proofer is not here. Too overpriced for a home appliance, he said.
That failure did not stop him though. He flew to southern China to team up with engineers and find a manufacturer, bringing the sale price to about $150.
Taylor flew back and forth multiple times to handle an array of development issues, such as testing prototypes or working out shipping contracts. Just last month, he finally began selling it and found investors for his new company Berkshire Innovations.
He is selling the product through the Internet and shipping it from warehouses in Connecticut and California. Right now, his focus is on trying to sell the product and "get the word out." But from there, he hopes Williamstown can be the home base of operations.
"What we expect and hope to build here is the nucleus of our customer support, our marketing and our operations here in Williamstown," Taylor said. "We just need to get our feet on the ground, firmly."
The inventor is also looking to expand Berkshire Innovations' international reach to Europe, where he found some interest.
Taylor said some "big names" in the cooking world are testing the product and praise from them could give the company's sales a boost. While he expects to receive good reviews, all he can do is "hurry up and wait."
