Jim & Sabina Hayden – Always Together

BY VAL SCHOGER; PHOTOS BY VAL SCHOGER

For Sabina and Jim Hayden, sharing everything is their way of living a happy life. They met at a local dance studio eight years ago and have been inseparable ever since. Sabina was active duty Air Force at the time and Jim owned and operated The Bagel Maker, downtown Panama City’s hometown bakery.

They married in 2007 and, when Sabina retired from the military one year later, she started helping Jim at the bakery. While he remains the chief baker, she takes care of all marketing, maintains their online presence, manages their social media sites and inspires new ideas. “She is the taste tester for the business and is very candid about her opinions,” says Jim. Sabina confirms “I usually try out new recipes and have Jim refine and tweak them until everything tastes just right.” Unlike the name might lead to believe, bagels are just a small part of the delicious freshly made baked goods they offer. Both agree. “We love bread,” and Jim adds grinning “I have never seen a carb I didn’t like.”

Jim and Sabina are rarely seen apart and even share one account on Facebook. “We might not be the average couple. We do almost everything together,” says Sabina. “We both agree, this is our last partnership – this applies to our marriage and business. We both have been married before and have established such a great trust in each other. We know this is it,” and Jim confirms “We really enjoy spending time together and enjoy each other’s company. We are very much on the same page.”

Sabina reflects on what may help other couples to succeed in business and in life together. “Communication, communication, communication, and laughter. The best advice I can give other couples is to keep talking to each other and put everything on the table. There can’t be any surprises. All that does is cause hurt feelings,” and she admits “He is my rock. I am the hot-headed one.” Jim confirms, “If Sabina should get upset about anything then remedying the problem becomes a priority.”

And there is more to their happiness. Jim states “We are alike in many different aspects. We are on the same page, especially when it comes to money management. We are both very frugal and have been making good business decisions. We like to plan our life ahead. We don’t just have a Plan B, we also have Plan C and Plan D.”

Jim adds “We complement each other. When she walks into the shop, she notices things that I don’t see and she immediately starts making improvements that I don’t even think about. We like doing most things together from dancing, running deliveries to our wholesale accounts, to playing in the beautiful gulf and spending time with good friends. We make it a rule to go on extended weekend trips together at least every five to six weeks. We also plan at least one extended vacation every year.”

Sabina reflects “We are simple, we just want to be happy. Jim truly loves running the store. He is living his dream of operating his own business . When I retired from the military after 20 years, I did not have such a dream. I loved being in the military and did not make plans beyond that . Jim’s dream of running his own business is something I can absolutely enjoy with him. One of our friends who runs his own business once said ‘I want to make a living and not a killing’ and we agree.”

Apart from running their business together, they are very engaged in the community and want to make a difference, especially in promoting Downtown Panama City. “We are trying to be as supportive as we can . We want every business to succeed downtown – all businesses will profit if each single business succeeds. As a business owner, you should remember that giving back does not always mean giving money or product from your business, it also means giving of your time or talent in helping others to succeed. Giving to the community comes back to us tenfold .” Jim adds “One of my mentors had a saying that we live by: ‘You can’t run through life with two catchers’ mitts.”

Jim and Sabina have established a lot of principles for their life and their business: They never sell a day-old bagel. They freeze leftovers and give them to local charities. They use the best products available and make everything from scratch except the baklava that is being sold. Jim states “If you have a bread recipe, then call me – if you can think it, I can try to bake it.”

The last question for this successful couple, “Are you doing anything special for Valentine’s Day?” Sabina answers with business on her mind “For Valentine’s Day we will make chocolate chip bagels for the entire month of February…” but then realizes that the question was not geared towards business and says with a heart melting smile, “Oh, of course the two of us, we will be planning a romantic dinner… and maybe even a couples’ massage…?”

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The Bagel Maker is located at 41 W. 4th Street in Downtown Panama City.

Find out more at thebagelmaker.com.

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