André and Jessica Kempton are the owners of Wild Leaven Bakery, where they focus on crafting naturally fermented sourdough bread and pastries. They have two locations in New Mexico, one in Taos and another in Santa Fe.

Together, the couple oversees the daily operations of the business.

“I can go up to Taos and take care of business there, and Jessica can go down to Santa Fe and she can manage the shop there,” André Kempton said.

But like many small-business owners, the Kemptons have been dealing with rising costs.

“We used to pay a little under $6 a pound, and now we’re paying like $8.50 a pound,” said André Kempton about the price of butter, which they use primarily for pastries. To account for these higher costs, they’ve had to bump up the price of their croissants by $1.

But the Kemptons stay hopeful about the future of their business.

“We know that we’re doing something that our neighbors want us to keep doing,” Jessica Kempton said.

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