From Top 6 on Amazon to Going Independent (And Back Again): The Baking Steel Journey
In 2019, seven years after launching on Kickstarter, Baking Steel was named a Top 6 Amazon Small Business of the Year out of millions of sellers nationwide. It was a moment of real validation.
Then, in 2021, we disappeared from Amazon completely.
We didn’t come back for three years.
This isn’t just a story about an award. It’s a story about growth, being forced to pivot, and learning how to build a brand that lasts.
Act 1: The Rise — The Amazon Era (2012–2019)
Baking Steel started with a simple idea and a Kickstarter campaign in 2012. The early days were a whirlwind, fueled by our first backers and a game-changing review from food scientist J. Kenji López-Alt, who said our Baking Steel “blew his favorite pizza stone out of the water.”
As demand grew, we knew we had to meet customers where they already were. At the time, that meant Amazon.
Amazon became a powerful engine for growth. It allowed a small, family-run business to reach thousands of home cooks and introduce a new generation of pizza makers to the power of steel.
The culmination of that era came in 2019, when we were nominated for Amazon Small Business of the Year and finished in the Top 6 nationwide. An idea inspired by a single line in Modernist Cuisine had turned into something much bigger.
From: Amazon Small Business Awards
Date: October 9, 2019
Subject: Congratulations! You've been chosen to be a finalist for the Amazon Small Business Awards.
When that email hit my inbox, I had to read it three times. Out of millions of sellers nationwide, we were chosen as a finalist. It was validation for our team—and for the customers who believed in us from day one.
Act 2: The Great Pivot, Doubling Down on Direct (2021–2024)
Then the world changed.
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Amazon prioritized essential items, and as a cookware product, we could no longer replenish inventory. At the same time, demand on our own website exploded as more people began baking at home.
We had no choice but to pull the plug on Amazon and focus entirely on our direct-to-consumer business at BakingSteel.com.
What felt risky at the time turned out to be transformational.
By focusing entirely on our own platform, we learned what it really means to own the customer relationship. Our customers didn’t just want a product—they wanted knowledge and confidence. That insight led us from in-person pizza classes to live Zoom pizza classes, which we still host today.
Our email list grew, our community tightened, and Baking Steel became more than a piece of steel. It became a resource.
Act 3: The Strategic Return (2024–Present)
By 2024, the world had stabilized and so had our production.
We didn’t return to Amazon because we had to. We returned because we chose to.
This time, we had the capacity, the systems, and a much stronger brand. Amazon remains a powerful marketplace, and meeting customers where they are simply made sense. Our direct-to-consumer business is still the heart of what we do, but Amazon allows us to expand our reach, on our terms.
Timeline of Our Amazon Journey
2012 — Launch on Kickstarter; endorsed by J. Kenji López-Alt of Serious Eats.
2013 — Featured in Bon Appétit, The Wall Street Journal, and Food & Wine.
2013–2019 — Rapid growth with Amazon as a primary sales channel.
2019 — Named a Top 6 finalist for Amazon Small Business of the Year; featured in Business Insider.
2021 — Exit Amazon due to COVID-era fulfillment constraints; pivot fully to direct-to-consumer.
2021–2024 — Focus on education, community, and Zoom pizza classes.
2024 — Strategic return to Amazon with stabilized production.
What’s Next
Our journey hasn’t been linear, but every pivot made us stronger. We learned how to thrive without platforms, which is exactly why we can use them strategically today.
It’s never just been about steel. It’s about helping people make pizza they’re proud of the kind that sparks memories and makes people say, “Wow.”
Want the full origin story? Read The Baking Steel Story.
Want to meet the inventor? Meet Andris Lagsdin.
About the Author
Andris Lagsdin is the inventor of the Baking Steel and founder of Baking Steel Company. After working in professional kitchens with chef Todd English, Andris combined his culinary background with his family’s 40+ years of steel manufacturing experience to create the Baking Steel in 2012. Today, he develops recipes and teaches home cooks around the world how to make incredible pizza at home.
