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Brownie dough preparation cookie or chocolate cake recipe ingridients, sweet food flat lay top view on concrete kitchen table background. Work with butter, flour, sugar bakery cooking. Text space
For years, Winnetka resident Emily Boling kept meeting women in her community who were deeply interested in not only securing work, but in developing sustainable careers about which they would be passionate. However, there was a recurring obstacle—these same women often came from challenging backgrounds and lacked the resources to successfully land jobs, a common problem in underserved areas of the city. Boling soon realized that she could combine her passion for helping women and her love of baking—which was nurtured in her grandmother’s kitchen from a young age—to help women reach the next step in their careers.
Founded in 2015, Floured Apron runs a 10-week job training and mentoring program that teaches both baking skills and professional development skills. Floured Apron provides transportation stipends, breakfast and lunch, and training supplies for ServSafe certification to ensure job placement after graduation.
“I wanted to help women in my community change their future trajectory—for themselves and for their families,” said Boling. “There’s love in baking, and it brings people together. I felt that the kitchen could be an amazing place for these women to support and encourage each other as they sought new opportunities.”
The program has been quite successful in doing just that. Nearly 90 percent of the women are successfully placed into a job after graduation, and over 90 percent of those women are still working there six months later.
Floured Apron is a part of the 1871 ChiBuys program, which supports local women- and minority-owned vendors. Not only has Floured Apron been featured at 1871 events, but 1871 has also sponsored the tuition for a woman to complete the program in hopes that Floured Apron continues to be successful in lifting up women. For more information on the ChiBuys program, visit 1871.com/ChiBuys.