Welcome to the first in my series of Successful Ladies of Brisbane.

Brisbane’s Lady of Baking is Jocelyn Hancock.

Jocelyn’s name is synonymous with quality baking in Brisbane. After establishing her artisian bakery Jocelyn’s Provisions and spending 14 years successfully turning that business into an iconic and delicious Brisbane brand (Jocelyn sold the business in 2009), Jocelyn is now living her dream of baking with clean, fresh, quality, locally sourced produce at Cake and Bake, West End.

How did you get your idea/inspiration for your business and what you do?

Nadine Ingram of  Flour and Stone is a superstar to me. She is someone I connect with, her ethos, her style. The comfort I feel when I walk into her Woolloomooloo shop takes me back to Jocelyn’s Provisions, the dim light, antique furniture, the quirkiness and I like the fact that the shop is full when 3 people are in it. Nadine is a regular girl who likes to bake – she was the inspiration for Jocelyn’s Provisions.

Also I find if I do a quick trip somewhere I am motivated and enthusiastic, it clears my business head. Sometimes you get scrambled when you are in the business and you need to step out of it.

Jocelyn was raised in Killarney and still owns a property in the beautiful Southern Darling Downs. Jocelyn is married with two children and on free weekends the family enjoy travelling to their country property in Killarney. Brisbane’s Lady of Baking admits that it’s hard to juggle your days when your husband is a shift worker and the children have sport and social commitments, she believes that being organised is the key.  Spending time at Killarney is also definitely a location of inspiraton and relaxation for Jocelyn.

Killarney – Jocelyn’s rural retreat (Image – Jocelyn Hancock)

What is the one piece of advice you would give to anyone reading this?

What I have learnt is that being a hard marker is your hardest challenge because you are putting the pressure on yourself to perform. You mark yourself harder than anyone else, so dealing with that has to be your greatest challenge, this is always my greatest challenge.

I consider myself a creative business person. I have made some good decisions at the right time as well as some crappy ones. My advice to people is don’t set the bar too high as it puts too much pressure on yourself

Tell us something that not many people know about you.

I eat more savoury food than sweet – fact. I love spicy rocket from the garden and lemon juice with soda.

I worked at Yungaba in 1998, my kitchen was there, this was when it was a government ‘arts’ residence and it was the most amazing time. I worked there for 2 years and could work night and day because power was cheap and I could run the bread ovens all night. When we had our breaks there at night, there were lots of musicians playing and we would go and sit out under the fig trees and listen to the music. It was so good because you could hear the music and smell the bread and then you would hear the oven timers go off and go back into the kitchen – it was amazing.

I baked out of Yungaba for the Brisbane Broncos and then Qantas wanted me to bake bread for them and I had to move to bigger premises. This was when I moved to James Street and I also bought a warehouse on Commerical Road and turned that into a bakery.

What trends do you see Brisbane adopting in the next 5 years?

Definitely the introduction of more whole food hubs, like Wooloongabba and more suburban food hubs like Fish Lane in South Brisbane. Brisbane is growing into a bigger city and people are living, working, eating and educating in that same zone – people are living a much more contained life.

Where is your favourite place (be it food, somewhere to relax or thing to do) in Brisbane?

Going to GOMA – I love the space and the calm feeling of the interior. To me walking into GOMA is calming and refreshing. In a foodsense my favourite has to be Northey Street Organic Market and Micks Nuts at West End.

What to you is Brisbane’s best kept secret?

Teneriffe Park at the top of Chester Street.  

The one restaurant visitors to Brisbane must try?

Stokehouse (at South Bank) as it encompass Brisbane and Hello Please in Fish Lane

Give us one piece of your wisdom please.

Eat the cleanest and most delicious food you can afford.

 I hope you have enjoyed reading my first Successful Ladies of Brisbane post, leave me a comment and let me know what you think. 

Cake and Bake

Where – 296 Montague Road, West End

Phone – (07) 3844 1088

Website – www.cakeandbake.com