The other thing we’ve done is to do email blasts and put information about new products on our website or targeted to a holiday or special event.

How are United’s cakes produced?

In our higher volume stores, we’re doing scratch production of cakes, and in our lower sales volume stores, we’re doing frozen.

How has baking in general evolved or changed?

It’s unfortunately a dying trade. There is less scratch production today, but manufacturers of bakery products have come a long way in their quality, so that part is better. We have three different banners, and in our Market Street stores–our higher volume and where gourmet meets everyday stores–I’d say 60 percent of our sales come from scratch production. But it’s difficult to find bakers.

I think all products have gotten better. You look at par-baked artisan breads, the quality on those are great. Mixes are great. Frozen cake layers, the quality on those is great. Even pre-fried donut quality is better.

Tammy Kampsula grew up in her parent's Minnesota retail bakery. After they sold it when she was 16, she was determined she'd never work in the industry again. After a brief stint at a department store, she was once again in baking, working as a sales clerk for McGlynn Bakery's Target store outlets. For the next 30 years, she served as a bakery manager, district manager, visual merchandising manager and vice president of operations before moving to McGlynn's frozen product division, Concept 2 Bakers, as national account manager. In 2004, Kampsula joined United Supermarkets as business director of bakery.

United Supermarkets, Lubbock, Texas, which opened its first store in 1916, operates 50 units with 32 in-store bakeries. Its banners include A Taste of Market Street, Amigos United, Market Street and United.