Trish Karter is an American entrepreneur and the founder of the Dancing Deer Baking Co.
Karter is a graduate of Lyme-Old Lyme High School, Wheaton College, and the Yale School of Management. [1]
She is the daughter of Peter Karter, a pioneer of the modern materials recycling industry. [2] Karter lives in Milton, Massachusetts [1] and is the mother of two children, Dimitri and Eleanna Antoniou. [3]
Karter was the founder and CEO of the Dancing Deer Baking Company, a Boston-based producer of high-end, natural baked goods for nationwide distribution. [4] The company is known for its commitment to employing and providing opportunity to individuals from deprived backgrounds. [5] [6] [7]
The company is noted for producing all-natural, preservative-free products. [8]
Karter is also an artist; part of the success of the Dancing Deer line of baked goods is credited to the "whimsical" figures that she has created to decorate the company's packaging. [9]
Baking is a method of preparing food that uses dry heat, typically in an oven, but can also be done in hot ashes, or on hot stones. The most common baked item is bread, but many other types of foods can be baked. Heat is gradually transferred "from the surface of cakes, cookies, and pieces of bread to their center, typically conducted at elevated temperatures surpassing 300°F. Dry heat cooking imparts a distinctive richness to foods through the processes of caramelization and surface browning. As heat travels through, it transforms batters and doughs into baked goods and more with a firm dry crust and a softer center. Baking can be combined with grilling to produce a hybrid barbecue variant by using both methods simultaneously, or one after the other. Baking is related to barbecuing because the concept of the masonry oven is similar to that of a smoke pit.
Drake's is a brand of American baked goods. The company was founded by Newman E. Drake in 1896 in Harlem, New York, as The N.E. Drake Baking Company, but it is now owned by McKee Foods. The company makes snack cake products such as Devil Dogs, Funny Bones, Coffee Cakes, Ring Dings, and Yodels. Drake's has traditionally been marketed primarily in the Northeastern U.S., but it expanded to the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern U.S. regions in 2016. The products are made under the Orthodox Union kosher certification guidelines.
Panera Bread is an American chain of bakery-café fast casual restaurants with over 2,000 locations, all of which are in the United States and Canada. Its headquarters are in Sunset Hills, Missouri. The chain operates as Saint Louis Bread Company in the Greater St. Louis area, where it has over 100 locations.
Goodman Fielder is an Australian manufacturer, marketer and distributor of bread, smallgoods, dairy products, margarine, oil, dressings and various food ingredients. Its main operations are in New Zealand, Australia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and New Caledonia, with over 40 manufacturing sites. The company employs over 5,000 people, and has more than 120 brands.
Au Bon Pain is an American fast casual restaurant, bakery, and café chain headquartered in Richardson, Texas, which operates 175 locations in the United States, Thailand, and Taiwan. The company is currently owned by AMPEX Brands.
Schwebel's Bakery is a regional producer of bread and other baked goods that was established in Youngstown, Ohio, in the early 20th century.
Beatrice Foods Company was a major American food conglomerate founded in 1894. One of the best-known food processing companies in the U.S., Beatrice owned many well-known brands such as Tropicana, Krispy Kreme, Jolly Rancher, Orville Redenbacher's, Swiss Miss, Peter Pan, Avis, Milk Duds, Samsonite, Playtex, La Choy and Dannon.
George Weston Limited, often referred to as Weston or Weston's, is a Canadian holding company. Founded by George Weston in 1882, the company today consists of the Choice Properties real estate investment trust and Loblaw Companies Limited, Canada's largest supermarket retailer, in which it maintains a controlling interest. The company is majority owned by Wittington Investments, Ltd Canada, a holding company that the Weston family are the controlling share holders in. Retail brands include President's Choice, No Name and Joe Fresh. The former Weston Bakeries division, which owned the brands Wonder, Country Harvest, D'Italiano, Ready Bake and Gadoua, was sold off to FGF Brands in 2022.
Peter Karter (1922–2010) was an American nuclear engineer and one of the pioneers of the modern recycling industry. He lived in Old Lyme, Connecticut.
Dancing Deer Baking Co. is a New York based bakery that sells kosher-certified cookies, brownies, cakes and baking mixes in the specialty/natural products, food service/travel/hospitality, business gifts and direct-to-consumer marketplaces. A variety of Dancing Deer products are also available in grocery chains and specialty food stores across the United States and certain parts of Canada, including nationally recognized Whole Foods Market.
The Federal Pretzel Baking Company of South Philadelphia was the first large-scale mass production soft pretzel manufacturer in Philadelphia.
The history of California bread as a prominent factor in the field of bread baking dates from the days of the California Gold Rush around 1849, encompassing the development of sourdough bread in San Francisco. It includes the rise of artisan bakeries in the 1980s, which strongly influenced what has been called the "Bread Revolution".
Grand Central Baking Company d.b.a. Grand Central Bakery is an American bakery chain with locations in Portland, Oregon, and Seattle, Washington and their metropolitan areas. It was founded in Seattle's Grand Central Hotel building, originally as The Bakery and later becoming Grand Central Bakery. The bakery is known for its artisan breads.
Vicki Escarra is an American business executive and entrepreneur. She is the founder of Vicki Escarra LLC and serves as a Senior Advisor and Executive Coach at Boston Consulting Group. Vicki is primarily known for her tenure as CMO of Delta Air Lines, CEO of Feeding America, and Global CEO of Opportunity International.
Bisk Farm is a brand which is owned by SAJ Food Products (P) Ltd, a part of the Aparna Group of Companies. It is a fast-moving consumer goods company, headquartered in the city of Kolkata in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Brownberry is a bakery located in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin. The bakery was established in 1946, and is best known for its wheat bread. The company has changed management several times, and as of 2014 is owned by Bimbo Bakeries USA.
Frank Carpenito is the chief executive officer and president of Dancing Deer Baking Company. He has been with the company since 2010, where he had previously been COO. Carpenito's experience has spanned consumer goods companies and entrepreneurship ventures. He is also a turnaround specialist. In April 2013, Carpenito told The Wall Street Journal that he had changed his company's incorporation status to that of a benefit corporation, in order to protect the company from possible shareholder lawsuits against the company's social contributions.
Baked by Melissa is a chain of bakeries founded by Melissa Ben-Ishay in 2008, specializing in "bite-size" miniature cupcakes. As of 2024, Baked by Melissa has 14 locations in the New York City metropolitan area and Boston.
Dawn Foods is an American wholesale manufacturer and distributor of breads, baked goods, mixes, and other food products. The company is based in Jackson, Michigan and operates globally.