New online marketplace platforms independent bakers in Austin

A new website is helping Austinites find small and home-based bakeries around town. Small Batch provides a neat, browsable online marketplace for independent bakers and cottage food businesses.

In its first eight weeks, the site has surpassed 100 Texas sellers and 220 products, Small Batch founder Wesley Elliott said in an email to CultureMap. Sellers can be based in private residences, commercial kitchens, or their own bakeries.

Small Batch organizes an industry that is inherently decentralized. Texans don't actually need a storefront to sell edible goods, and they don't necessarily need an affiliation with something like a farmers market, either. Texas has cottage food production rules, but much of the system is hands-off.