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While many kids get an early entrepreneurial start by selling treats to their neighbors, Morgan Hipworth took his young interest in food to the next level. The young founder behind popular Australian bakery, Bistro Morgan, developed a love of food via cooking shows at about seven years old.
“I watched other young people on TV working towards their dreams and thought to myself, ‘If they can do it, I can do it,’” Morgan says. And he turned that belief into action: “Each weekend, I would make three-course meals for my parents and family, serving up my creations in my family’s dining room,” he says. “I then extended my clientele to the extended family, offering freshly baked sweet treats for birthdays and events.” At age 13, he was encouraged to bring samples to a local cafe—and became solely responsible for its supply of sweets and baked goods.
Learn how Morgan’s determination and talent for brand storytelling help him nurture a loyal customer base, maintain his creative vision, and grow his business—and how his Squarespace website acts as a hub for all of the above.
Make customers part of your brand story
Morgan has brought in new customers and strengthened his relationship with existing followers by making them feel like they’re on the Bistro Morgan journey with him. While his story is a standout—he launched his first Bistro Morgan pop-ups in 2016 and opened its flagship store the same year at just 15 years old—for Morgan, it’s about finding points of connection, no matter who you are.
“Being able to tell a story and really bring customers along for the ride has always been an integral part of building a customer base,” he says. “Connection is the number one priority, and is what turns a one-off customer into a loyal customer who’ll support you for life.”
Morgan’s brand storytelling lives across multiple platforms, with updates and customer photos filling Bistro Morgan’s social media pages. And Morgan seamlessly weaves the bakery’s brand story into his other work as a content creator. Morgan’s personal Instagram page, where he shares savory recipes, sponsored content, and snippets of his day-to-day life, is also filled with desserts and behind-the-scenes peeks of his work at Bistro Morgan.
Maintain creative control of your brand content
With a strong sense of the Bistro Morgan story and voice, Morgan has found it both practical and empowering to be a guiding force behind Bistro Morgan’s brand aesthetic too. He does the majority of the bakery’s photography himself, and uses his Squarespace website to communicate the brand’s tone to customers while sharing information on everything the bakery offers.
“The photography really started as a way of trying to save money,” he says. “It also now allows me to have full creative control over what the image and end product looks like, which is something that I think is so often overlooked when working with an outsourced photographer. Photos that are intentionally being shot to be placed on our website have to really represent everything Bistro Morgan is about.”
It’s important for the Bistro Morgan website to “convey a fun, playful, and friendly tone, which is represented throughout the design and photography,” Morgan says. “Squarespace’s drag and drop builder makes it super easy to be able to transfer my ideas into a reality.”
With catering and delivery options, an in-store menu, and a debut cookbook under his belt, having a platform that makes it easy to update the Bistro Morgan website with new offerings is valuable too. “Being able to have one place that provides all info to customers is so critical,” Morgan says. “The different parts can sometimes be overwhelming, so being able to have the one location that explains everything makes the whole sales funnel so much simpler.”
Give your business space to grow
When it comes to planning for Bistro Morgan’s next move, Morgan is willing to let things unfold in their own time. “For me, growth has always occurred naturally, and I think this is the best way for things to play out,” he says.
Where others might feel pressured to chase their next big hit, he’s more comfortable giving his successes room to breathe while he experiments in the background. “We’re always testing new and exciting recipes, but we’re kind of at the stage of our menu where it’s the best it’s ever been,” he says. “We have so many crowd favorites that if we replaced them with something else it wouldn’t go down well!”
That patient and customer-focused approach comes to the surface in his advice for other entrepreneurs looking to grow their own business. “Testing the waters slowly and ensuring that you make the right decisions will always be key,” Morgan says. “Be real and stay true to your values and this will reflect onto customers.”
Inspired by Morgan’s story? Start building your own brand on Squarespace.