The mother and son duo behind Bake Blue Bakery have brought the business from their home to a brand-new storefront.

Debra and Reed Pennington opened the doors to the brick-and-mortar storefront of Bake Blue Bakery on Monday, Sept. 28, located at 6880 Spanish Fort Blvd. Debra Pennington said they completely sold out of all of their baked goods the first day of opening.

"That's so exciting and it just confirms that there was a need for a bakery and for a business like this, employing adults with disabilities in this area," Debra Pennington said on opening the storefront.

The bakery was founded by Debra Pennington and her son Reed, who has autism. The name of the bakery, Bake Blue, is a reference to both autism awareness and the great blue heron, which stands as a symbol of resilience and independence that embodies the values guiding their business.

Many of their employees also have autism, with Debra Pennington saying families who have children of autism have come in and felt encouraged seeing people like them work behind the counter.

"Although we're open now, it still does not feel real," Reed Pennington said. "It's still hard to believe this is already happening, you know? It's exciting."

With the new storefront, they now have commercial equipment to help operate their business, including a new oven, refrigeration equipment and commercial mixers. The bakery serves cookies, cheesecakes by the slice, as well as both whole pound cakes and pound cake slices. They have also started serving freshly made muffins by scratch, which include apple cinnamon, lemon, blueberry and orange.

Bake Blue Bakery's new storefront in Spanish Fort is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.