Today we’d like to introduce you to Sean & Sofia Fuller.
Sean & Sofia, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Sean’s Story:
Like many kids, I started baking early. I was in second grade when I first learned from my dad, who baked every day and never treated it as something unusual or gender-specific. In our house, the rule was simple: if I baked it, I could eat it.
That was all the motivation I needed.
Before long, I was baking three times a week, which meant there were always cookies, cakes, and snacks around the house. Eventually, the dishes started piling up, so my family added a new rule: if I cooked, I had to do the dishes too. Somehow, even that did not slow me down.
By fifth grade, I was making large chiffon cakes and all kinds of cookies. In middle school, I became known for baking cakes for parties I was invited to. By high school, I was excited to finally take cooking classes, but I quickly realized the first-year class was far below where I already was. I did not just want to follow recipes. I wanted to understand how ingredients worked together. I wanted to know how flavors were built. I was searching for something I had never tasted before, something that could finally satisfy my appetite for sweets.
The next year, I took advanced cooking, hoping it would go deeper. It was still too basic. I complained to my teachers and tried to explain what I was really looking for. In response, they gave me a cooking award, and the prize was lessons at the local Sur La Table. I chose the “help the teacher” option because it stretched the prize money far enough for almost two classes.
After school, I kept baking, but I still had not found that special taste I was chasing. So I started visiting bakeries, looking for that spark.
In 2008, I found it at Tartine in San Francisco.
For the first time, I understood what truly great croissants and bread could be. I visited again and again, and when Tartine began releasing books, I studied them closely. I practiced the recipes over and over until I got them right. That is where I learned how to make croissants and really good bread.
Every time I moved, I baked for my neighbors. It became a way of introducing myself and building community. But when I moved to Washington, I decided it was time for a serious upgrade. I bought a 220-pound Estella bread mixer, steam ovens, proofers, and even sheeters so I could keep perfecting my craft.
Soon, I was baking 12 to 15 loaves at a time just to feed my neighbors, who always seemed to want more bread. A few years ago, I went through 300 pounds of flour in a single calendar year at home. My wife and neighbors kept asking when I was finally going to leave the corporate world and open a bakery.
At the time, my career was in cybersecurity, where my final role was Director of Cybersecurity. But baking had always been there, waiting.
That moment finally came this year, when my wife and I tried Byen Bakeri and fell in love with its Nordic flair. We decided to take the leap, leave cybersecurity behind, and buy the bakery.
Since then, I have been working with the staff to learn the business, understand the traditions of Byen Bakeri, and find the right ways to add my own voice to the menu. This summer, I am excited to begin releasing some of my own creations, including a Tartine-inspired morning bun and my famous white bread, which my neighbors unanimously agree is the best bread they have ever had.
For me, baking has never just been about food. It has been about curiosity, generosity, craft, and community. It started with a simple rule when I was a kid: if I baked it, I could eat it.
All these years later, I am still baking for the same reason — to make something worth sharing.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My journey in baking has just really started. Learning to bake has had many bumps along the road. Each times I would take a step back, figure out the science of why something happened, then making changes to the way I bake.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
My Croissants and my bread are some of the items that really blow people’s socks off. prior to baking, I worked as a nation-state cyber security specialist focused on defending a nuclear company from Russia, China, Iran, North Korean and Nigerian cyber criminal gangs, which led to leadership roles culminating in a directorship. My love of physics and science and a knowledge that there is always more to learn when you leave your ego by the door has helped shape the type of baker I am. my leadership roles taught me servant leadership and how to lead without pushing people away.
What makes you happy?
Honestly, a group gathering where my bread is in the center of the table. It tells me a story of our ancestors from thousands of years ago when food was a larger deal then it is today. Families would gather around a dinner table with a loaf of bread, and eat and laugh and enjoy peoples company.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.byenbakeri.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/byen_bakeri/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ByenBakeri/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/byen-bakeri-seattle
- Other: https://byen-bakeri-105478.square.site/
