Lilly Tapper knew in high school that she wanted to own a bakery. She experimented with flavors and a variety of homemade treats, baking for family and friends as a way of “practicing.”

“I always knew I wanted to bake, and I always knew I wanted to open my own business,” Tapper said. 

Tapper later attended Johnson and Wales University, where she received formal training in baking. After moving back to Marblehead, she launched her business from her home. For three years, she sold her goods at the Swampscott Farmers Market, an experience she says “helped me fall in love with Swampscott.”

Now, Tapper has a full bakery of her own in Swampscott, as Three Hundred Fifty opened on Humphrey Street at the end of November.

“I wanted to be in an area where people were going by,” Tapper said. “It’s been crazy, amazing, overwhelming but in all the best ways.”

Tapper’s bakery now occupies a space formerly home to a CBD store, which she renovated and outfitted with a full kitchen.

“It was like a blank slate,” Tapper said. “Every bakery that I go into, I always take mental notes of what I liked or what I’d do differently. I went to London a few years ago, and every bakery that I passed by, their display was in their front window, and of course I went into every single one.”

Tapper had never seen anything like the London bakery setups in the U.S., so she decided to bring the concept home. Eventually, she plans for the entire counter to showcase cakes and cookies, making it easy for people to see them as they walk by.

The display also doubles as the front-of-house register, which Tapper says is “really fun to work in,” since her only customer interactions before were at farmers markets.

“I find myself up here so much talking to people. I’m meeting people, and I find it so fun to learn people’s names and stories,” Tapper said. “We have our regulars already, which is so crazy. The third day we had people already coming in every day.”

The bakery’s name, Three Hundred Fifty, came from her brother. Tapper had been struggling to come up with a name until he asked one night at dinner, “Well, what temperature do you bake at?”

“I said ‘Three Hundred Fifty,’ and he said ‘there you go, there’s your name,’” Tapper said. 

Three Hundred Fifty offers a wide range of baked goods, including muffins, cookies, brownies, cakes, and scones. Tapper says she enjoys “experimenting and being different.”

“I feel like a lot of the flavors you don’t see at other places,” Tapper said. “I want to make a product you can’t get anywhere else. We take a lot of time to develop our flavors.”

The bakery’s flavors are wide-ranging. Caramelized onion and cheddar scones are a favorite, Tapper said. Cookies include creative options like whiskey caramel, chocolate cranberry, graham cracker toffee, and white chocolate snickerdoodle. Stuffed cookies feature flavors such as key lime pie and chocolate Oreo.

Cakes, however, are Tapper’s favorite. She offers slices and mini options too for people who don’t need a full, large dessert.

“I love the cakes,” Tapper said. “I take custom orders, so everyone has different inspirations and different themes for their parties. I get to go out of my comfort zone in the designing aspect of that.”

Tapper said she gravitated toward cake decorating and baking while at Johnson and Wales. She also enjoyed plated desserts, appreciating “the artistic elements.” Unique creations, like the bakery’s pancake mix, include cereal in the batter for both flavor and a playful twist.

She added that custom orders have already surged since opening the Humphrey Street location.

The bakery also features a seasonal drink menu, including items like banana bread latte, cookie butter latte, maple vanilla chai, cherry matcha, and tiramisu latte.

Tapper envisions future collaborations with other local businesses and organizations. Salty Dog already provides flower arrangements for the tables, and she hopes to collaborate on events for holidays like Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day. She also expressed interest in working with the Military Friends Foundation.

“Everyone I’ve met around here is so nice,” Tapper said.

Three Hundred Fifty is located at 222 Humphrey St. and is open Tuesday through Friday from 7 a.m. to noon, and Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.