Kevin Masse has always been attracted to the kitchen, where the rhythm of the kitchen and cooking was at the center of his education. Growing up in Syracuse, in New York, the kitchen was a lively place every evening while the family gathered around the table, with quality ingredients always at the center of their meals. His Italian grandmother also played a key role in turning on his profound love for food. He was at his side which he learned for the first time to cook with fresh pasta, as he lovingly made his homemade pizzas for the family. “I think the first time I cooked dinner for my family, I probably had 10 or 11 years old,” Kevin recalls. “It has always been a part of my life.” His love for the precision and methodical nature of cooking has grown to high school, even if he never imagined that he would turn into a career.
For years, cooking has remained a dear hobby. Even while working in marketing and in the media in New York City, Kevin found time to cook for dinners and office meetings. A fortuitous passage in the food media has rekindled his passion for cooking. During this period, he worked with Cook from scratchDevelop content partnerships with many of the brands that continue to collaborate with the publication today. This also led him to contribute to the coverage recipe to the May/June 2017 issue, a moment that prefigured his future in the world of cooking.
In 2019, Kevin’s journey took a fundamental turning point. After moving from New York City to Hartford, Connecticut, an area with her husband, Michael, professor at Trinity College, Kevin ensured one of the first cottage food licenses in West Hartford, just as he became legal for the Bakers Home to be sold directly to consumers. More or less in the same period, he was given an appetizer for his friend of cooking books Terry Walters. This appetizer – and the natural leavening techniques that he shared with him – was the foundation of small state provisions.
“I started doing a couple of loaves a week,” says Kevin. “I was cooking the Dutch ovens at home, selling on a subscription model.” The customers enrolled in eight weeks sessions, during which Kevin delivered fresh loaves directly to their doors. It was a small and sustainable operation, until everything changed in March 2020.
When the pandemic guard Covid-19, the non-contact delivery became a necessity and Kevin adapted quickly, cooking and dropping the loaves in customer homes. “I had this moment when I thought:” I can stop doing it or leaning it and making it work, “he says. He chose the latter and, in a short time, small state dispositions have passed his home kitchen. He converted part of his home in a bakery, arranging a shaped table, a bread oven and a 40 -liter spiral mixer.
At the end of 2020, it was clear that this was no longer just a secondary project. With several full -time employees who rely on him, Kevin has made the jump to the owner of the bakery full -time. The first retail position of the oven, a welcoming space of 200 square feet, was opened in July 2021. It became quickly evident that they needed more space. In July 2023, small state provisions moved to a larger space, expanding in a complete and greater production experience.
Behind this success there is a real family effort. Her husband helped to remove the bakery, while his father is Chief Technology Officer, his stepmother is Chief Financial Officer and his stepfather is his accountant. “It really takes a village to open a bakery and cultivate it,” says Kevin. “And I’m so grateful for mine.”
But the small state provisions are not just to make large bread and pastries: it is a matter of creating a space in which customers feel seen and appreciated. “We greet every customer as if they were a family,” says Kevin. “We know them, the names of their children, their orders. It is not just a transaction; it is a connection.”
That sense of hospitality also extends to his team. Kevin has created a series of fundamental values, his version of the ten commandments, to ensure that his employees feel supported. “The family comes first, second and third,” he explains. “I want my team to know that their personal life matters, that we respect their time and their commitments outside of work”.
From the beginning, the small state provisions have focused on high quality organic ingredients. “When you work only with flour, salt and water, you have to pay attention to details,” says Kevin. Its team melts organic cereals whenever possible, including brake rye flour locally by a small manufacturer in Hadley, Massachusetts. “We try to work with small local suppliers before moving on to national ones,” he says. “It’s about supporting our community.”
Kevin’s commitment to quality also extends to its other baked goods. The oven began with only two types of biscuits and a focaccina, but today the custody of the pastry shop of butter croissants, chocolate croissant, almond croissants, banana bread and more. If you visit the bakery, three items to try are its rubbery ginger biscuits, with a natural leavening and the blueberry focaccins never too sweet.
Now, small state provisions have two locations and uses more than 30 people, a mix of full-time and part-time staff. Some of them are high school students who receive their first taste of the world of work, something that Kevin loves to support, inspired by his adolescent work at the Wegmans regional supermarket. “I love the fact that we can offer a space in which young people can learn the art of hospitality,” he says. “They are part of something bigger here.”
While Kevin still spends time in the production cuisine, his role has evolved. A leadership course with the Broad Bakers Guild of America introduced him to work from the “balcony”, pushing back to supervise operations rather than being practical in production. “It’s a transition that I’m working,” he admits. “But I love to guide the team and make sure they feel supported.”
Through all growth and success, Kevin’s love for cooking remains unchanged. “It’s still magical for me,” he says. “Taking something raw, putting it in the oven and bringing out something completely transformed: he never ages.”
His personal favorites? The leavening baguette with leavening, which remind him of his travels in Paris. He also loves the focaccia, cooked in a square pan with extra-virgin, rosemary and sea salt olive oil. “That’s really special,” he says. “It’s simple but perfect.”
Connecticut, the third smaller state in the country, inspired the name of small state provisions. While the name reflects the dimensions of the state, the panette itself represents something much larger: a company that has grown by a small cottage operation in a milestone of its community, built on quality values, connection and care, a carefully carefully loaf.
