The Baker Everyone in Bluff Park Is Talking About
As a new mom, Ramsey Nuss's search for community yielded Good Neighbor Baking. If you haven't tried her cookie cakes and Mini Sams, you're missing out! Image: Good Neighbor Baking
Hospitality was baked into Ramsey Nuss’s childhood thanks to the family business, Pursell Farms, a luxury resort in Sylacauga, AL. So when she and her family settled in Birmingham’s Bluff Park neighborhood, Ramsey drew on her heritage (and her creative culinary skills) to open Good Neighbor Baking.
After partnering with Daysol Coffee Lab in 2024 to open Bluff Park Coffee Collective, Ramsey moved her home operations into a commercial kitchen. We chatted with the local entrepreneur about how she got her start, the challenges of expanding her business, and what the community has meant to her along the way.
Have you always been a baker?
I was first introduced to baking in my grandmother’s kitchen, where I helped with her weekly sourdough loaves. Once I hit junior high, my siblings and I would spend weeks every summer working as support staff at Camp Marannook, a nearby Christian camp outside of Auburn.
It was during those summers that I learned more of the fundamentals of baking, as the kitchen director would always assign me the ‘baker’ role in the camp kitchen. I would bring what I learned home and practice.
Flash forward to 2017. I was looking for ways to connect with other local moms after moving to a new neighborhood, so I decided to use baking to build community. Baking felt like it gave me a purpose during those nap-trapped hours at home, and it just brought me a lot of joy.
What draws you to baking professionally?
The part I love most about baking is what it’s taught me. It’s continued to push me outside my comfort zone, introduced me to skills and talents I never dreamed I’d possess (whether in business or decorating in general), and even allowed me to tap into the entrepreneurial roots I inherited from my father. It’s truly been such a fun journey.
What is Good Neighbor Baking’s origin story?
Growing Good Neighbor Baking has been a really sweet experience. It started with an initial Facebook post back in December 2017, offering pre-decorated gingerbread cookies. The moms of Bluff Park were so supportive of me, and they returned the following year for more cookies and spread the word to their friends and family.
In December of 2019, I had hundreds of gingerbread and sugar cookies spread across my kitchen counters for carport pickup, and my heart couldn’t have been more thankful. I felt like my soul had finally found purpose here. In that moment, I thought about how I could keep this going outside of the holidays, and that’s when Good Neighbor Baking was born.
At first, this was just a creative outlet for me, but I began to fall in love with the process of not just baking, but also building a brand. At the time, no one was selling cookie cakes from home, which is why I focused on that particular product.
I grew up in a home filled with talented artists, so I set a high bar for myself when it came to cake decorating. I followed accounts that inspired me, took online courses by Christina Tosi, and really just gave myself permission to push boundaries.
What was the inspiration for the name?
Good Neighbor came from me just looking for connection within my neighborhood. If you’re familiar with the Pursell name, you know hospitality is something we value in our family business. I grew up with parents who modeled this exceptionally well.
With the business just a stone’s throw from my childhood home, our family table was filled with new faces on a weekly basis, fellowshipping over meals, dessert … you name it. I watched people enter our home as strangers and leave as friends. Our table was constantly filled with laughter, deep conversations, and quality moments.
Through Good Neighbor Baking, I want to encourage those moments in other people’s homes because they were so special in mine. I want my baked goods to simply be used as vessels for making meaningful connections with the people around you, whether you are dropping off a sweet treat to a friend or celebrating with family around a GNB cookie cake.
What was the transition like going from fulfilling orders at home to running a daily bakery?
It was very difficult — and still is! Business ownership is not for the faint of heart. I went into this endeavor trusting it would all work out, but also with a lot of anxiety. Even though I knew I needed to branch out of the house, it was still hard knowing I was about to take on more responsibility, spend less time with my boys, and finally be “on the map.”
For years, I had a small, specialty menu to keep orders manageable and leave time for my children and other activities. Now I am responsible for managing inventory, making pastries every day, and keeping up with all the prep. Thankfully, since opening in April 2024, my husband and I have allowed ourselves to reevaluate the business structure and given ourselves permission to change anything that isn’t working anymore, which has given me some peace.
Have there ever been moments of self-doubt? If so, how have you worked through them?
Hi, my name is Ramsey, and I struggle with imposter syndrome! But seriously, so many moments of self-doubt. Let’s just say I am very grateful to my husband for helping me keep a level head in the hard seasons. I’m also a huge fan of Paul David Tripp’s book, New Morning Mercies. It has really helped ground my thinking and point my heart back to Jesus.
What do you like to do when you’re not working?
Train for marathons, listen to entrepreneurial podcasts, spend time outside with my boys, visit family at the farm, or maybe take a solid nap!
Who or what is inspiring you right now?
When I watch my cake-decorating reels after I finish filming the design process and they turn out even better than I imagined, it lets me see how far my skills have come since I first put myself out there. That’s what encourages me to keep pushing the limits on what’s possible with buttercream.
What is your best piece of advice?
Don’t be afraid to fail. Sometimes that is exactly where the magic happens!
Lightning Round!
Favorite coffee-and-pastry combo: A cinnamon-honey cappuccino and my delicious cinnamon rolls!
Last delicious local meal: Anything from Automatic Seafood
Favorite place to vacation: Anywhere my husband will let me sign up for a race!
Your go-to gift to give: A pine-scented candle that smells like Christmas
Favorite recent TV show binge: Frasier
Book(s) on your bedside table: Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer and New Morning Mercies by Paul David Tripp
Three things you can’t live without: Running, burgers, and sleep
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Katie Leigh Matthews
A Birmingham native, Katie is a lifelong waterfall chaser and is passionate about the outdoors. She also loves connecting with remarkable women in the Birmingham community and bringing their stories to life. Katie has been writing professionally for over six years; you can find more of her work at Moms.com and Islands.com.