Today we’d like to introduce you to Sadie Harmon.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I started out as a mechanical engineering student in a PhD program at the University of Colorado Boulder (Sko Buffs!). You could say opening a commercial bakery was a bit of a career pivot.
Late in 2020, I took some time to slow down and reflect—to look back at where I’d come from and think about where I was headed. You could say I took a “Full Stop.” In doing so, I realized I didn’t like where I was going or the person I was becoming. I needed to reprioritize my life and put people first.
I’ve always felt that food is a wonderful tool for connection and gathering. Food makes people feel comfortable, seen, and cared for. Think about it—most gatherings involve food in one way or another.
Around that same time, I took a trip to visit my family and made a batch of sourdough crackers for them. After a few iterations (and plenty of input from my mom and sister!), we landed on what we thought was a pretty perfect sourdough cracker. Luckily, we had plenty of taste testers around to validate that theory.
Within a month, I officially opened Full Stop. Bakery, and just one month later, I left my PhD program to build this new business.
Full Stop. started in my South Boulder home with just me and a sheer determination to encourage people to slow down, make good food, and gather together. While we’re still very much a small business, Full Stop. has grown significantly. There’s now a whole team behind it—including my husband and my cousin!
Today, our crackers are distributed to nearly 200 stores across Colorado and around the country, and through the end of September 2026, we’ll be in roughly 500 Sprouts Farmers Market stores. We’re getting into more stores every day, but we’ve stayed true to what made Full Stop. special from the beginning: making a really good cracker from simple ingredients and a true sourdough fermentation process.
We’ve really found our niche in grocery by offering a naturally fermented sourdough cracker that relies on fermentation to create its texture and base flavor. We don’t rely on added vinegars or powders to create that sourdough character—we let the process do the heavy lifting for us.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
In The Last Lecture, Randy Pausch said, “Experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted.” And I know that sometimes, that’s exactly what I need.
Don’t get me wrong—Full Stop. has had its fair share of smooth seas. But those aren’t the moments that have stretched me or challenged me to learn, adapt, and persevere. More often than not, the bumps along the way have prepared me and the company for something that came later. As long as I was learning something, I could handle whatever it was.
A very recent example: we were given a huge opportunity to take Full Stop. nationwide with Sprouts Farmers Market—roughly 500 stores—for a three-month trial. Huge. I said yes and figured we’d sort out the rest as we went. Spoiler alert: we did. The trial has gone really well, and we’ve gotten an incredible amount of on-the-ground education and feedback along the way.
However, that does not mean it has gone without error. One small piece of that puzzle was couponing. I had never touched the subject before, but I assumed it would be straightforward. It was not. I ended up spending precious time and resources trying to force something, only to ultimately cancel the contract and move forward without coupons. On its own, it was a relatively small bump, specifically in hindsight. But when you’re navigating that alongside hundreds of other action items, emails, requests, demos, production challenges, and everything else that comes with a huge opportunity, the time did feel rather turbulent.
Something I frequently come back that a mentor once told me is that it’s better to make mistakes now, while I’m small and the ripples aren’t so big. I’ve carried that with me. So in the end, I’m grateful for the lesson. Every challenge has given me a little more experience, a little more perspective, and a better understanding of how to navigate whatever comes next.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Full Stop. Bakery?
Full Stop. Bakery makes sourdough crackers from scratch in Boulder, Colorado. At our core, we’re creating clean, simple foods that inspire people to slow down and savor meaningful moments.
Our crackers are made with a true sourdough fermentation, which gives them their naturally tangy flavor and distinctive texture. We don’t rely on vinegar, sourdough powders, or other shortcuts to create that flavor—we slow down and let fermentation do the heavy lifting. We pair that process with simple, recognizable ingredients to make a cracker that feels both elevated and approachable—an everyday luxury.
We’ve found a unique niche in grocery by bringing the craft and character of naturally fermented sourdough to a category that is often dominated by highly processed products. Our crackers are made to complement the good food already on the table, cheese, dips, charcuterie, soups, or simply a snack straight from the bag!
I’m most proud of how much Full Stop. has grown without losing the heart of what it was built on. I’m proud that we’re always looking for ways to make our ingredients list shorter and cleaner, not the other way around, support other small businesses, and truly care about how our food is made, the people we work with, and the communities we get to be part of.
Full Stop. is about more than a cracker. It’s an invitation to slow down, put something good on the table, and make a little more space in a busy world for connection.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
For pods, I primarily listen to The Tennis Podcast, which admittedly, doesn’t help my professional life much. However, it does bring me a lot of joy and is a wonderful break for my brain. Which, if you haven’t caught the gist of what Full Stop. is all about…is very important!
I listen to industry podcast as well. The CPG Weekly and Startup CPG are two great ones!
Books, where to even begin!! The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry (by John Mark Comer) is what really fueled Full Stop. at the beginning. Many of my convictions about wanting to start Full Stop. came through that book. It’s worth revisiting often. Other good reads for entrepreneurs include How I Built This (by Guy Raz, also a great podcast), The Power of Habit (by Charles Duhigg), Grit (by Angela Duckworth) and plenty of non work related books for balance!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://fullstopbakery.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fullstop.bakery/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FullStop.Bakery
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/fullstopsourdoughcrackers/posts/
