A couple from Baglung has found their calling in baking bread and pastries.

Deepak Gautam and his wife Sanam start early each day at 5 am. Deepak personally delivers bread, pastries, doughnuts, and puffs to grocery shops, hotels, and restaurants. Once he returns in the afternoon, he gets back to baking.

Deepak supplies bread to 120 grocery stores daily. The secret to their success lies in their disciplined routine. He rarely gets a chance to rest because he works tirelessly throughout the day—rain or shine.

For the past eight years, Gautam has operated a bread factory at Shivadhara Chowk in ward 2 of Baglung Municipality, while the couple lives in ward 7.

In a time when many youths are migrating abroad and see no future in Nepal, the story of Deepak, 37, and Sanam, 30, stands out as exceptional.

The couple has been making bread with 50 kg of refined flour daily. They have hired three workers in the factory.

They also run a shop at the factory where customers frequently order birthday cakes. On some days, they receive as many as 20 birthday cake orders. They make around Rs24,000 daily from their ‘The Star Bakery’ and its popularity continues to grow.

“People used to view tea and bread shops differently in the past. However, it’s changing now as bakeries have become commercial and an integral part of daily life and celebrations,” said Deepak.

Deepak is proud of his work as he has set an example that hard work pays off.

Recently, he has started baking Korean bread, a skill he picked while working as a migrant worker in Korea. After returning to Nepal, he opened a tea shop in partnership with his elder brother Tulasi.

Named ‘Pragati Pratibha Chiya Pasal’, a tea shop is now run by his wife and his sister-in-law (Tulasi's wife) and has become quite popular. It serves hundreds of cups of tea daily.

Deepak has been operating the bakery business for the past eight years.

Although there are a few other bakeries in the district, and all have been doing well, The Star Bakery stands out, according to retailers.

“There are many bakeries, but most consumers ask for products from The Star Bakery,” said Khagendra Poudel, a local retailer.

Known for his gentle demeanour, Deepak personally delivers bakery items to shops and homes. He has earned respect for his integrity as he carefully keeps a record of goods delivered to shop and collects payments occasionally.

“Deepak accepts payment only after the sale of bakery items and takes back unsold items,” said Tal Bahadur Kunwar, a local hotelier. “The bakery products are excellent. People love them.”

Retailers and entrepreneurs appreciate Deepak's flexibility in allowing them to pay after the products are sold.

Initially, Deepak faced struggles. He used to bake bread using a traditional fire oven called Bhatti, which caused smoke pollution in the neighbourhood. So using his savings from five years of work in South Korea, he invested in a modern factory and installed an electric oven.

“I used to work in different sectors while in Korea, but volunteered at a nearby bakery shop and learned the skill.”

He invested Rs1 million in an oven and another Rs1.5 million in flour-mixing machines. He also built a home and bought a motorbike for deliveries.

Despite these investments, his funds were not enough. But he received support from his wife, and Deepak managed to increase his income and he also makes regular savings in a credit cooperative.

However, when the directors of Shiva Shikhar Cooperatives fled last year, he lost all his savings.

The cooperative's collapse ruined Deepak, including many entrepreneurs. But Deepak's hard work continues.

Now, Deepak has abandoned any plans of going abroad again. He has started saving in a commercial bank and plans to upgrade his business.

He has also requested the Department of Food Technology and Quality Control to conduct lab tests on his bakery products.

But, expired bakery items present a new challenge, he said.

“If I miss removing expired products daily, the government’s inspection team could punish me. So I am more worried than the customers,” Deepak said.

His bakery items are good for five days after production. “But breads from other factories have an expiry date of 10 days,” said Poudel. “As The Star Bakery's bread is fresher and has a shorter shelf life, the demand for it is higher.”

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Photo caption:

Deepak Gautam (left) and his wife Sanam in this combination photo.