We Love our people
Meet the owner
Mandy Powell
Owner
Born and raised in Oklahoma, Mandy’s favorite early childhood books were “Try Again, Sally!” and “Cindy Bakes a Funny Cake.” Not yet realizing baking was her passion, she attended the University of Oklahoma and the University of Tennessee, followed by a career in the medical field for several years. After her twin daughters were born, she left her career as a clinical educator for a medical device company to be a stay-at-home mom. At the age of 50, Mandy followed her dreams by going to culinary school and specializing in the art of pastry. Laurel & Pearl was born, and the rest is history! When not baking, Mandy stays busy with her husband, five daughters, and two dogs, including Pippa the Frenchie.
meet our team
Baylee Riley
Lead Overnight
Baylee was born in Plano, Texas, and lived in several different places growing up. She finally found her way to Lindale when she was a junior in high school. She decided to stay close to home for college and went to TJC. She first got her certification in sign language. But she wanted more and loves to bake, so she continued her education and received her degree in Culinary Arts with an emphasis in pastry.
She has two brothers and one sister, and they encouraged her the whole way. Family means a lot to Baylee, so in her spare time you can find her in the kitchen experimenting with recipes with her mom or playing with her nieces. She also enjoys spending time with her Maltese Buff. Her favorite thing to bake is cookies and bars.
Diana Pineda
Lead Pâtisserie
Meet Diana our Macaron Baker Magnifique and Lead Pâtisserie.
Originally from California, Diana has lived in Tyler since 2012. She took coursework to be a vet tech in high school but decided to change course in college. In the fall of 2019, Diana was accepted as a student in the new TJC Culinary Arts program where she finally found her niche. It was there that she met Mandy, owner of Laurel & Pearl. Diana has fun baking and loves the feeling of making others happy with what she makes.
If you‘ve ever had our macarons or cream puffs, Diana is the one who takes on the challenge of making these finicky but delectable treats!
In her role as Lead Pâtisserie, Diana oversees production and quality control of all of the sweet items on our menu.
As someone with autism, Diana finds it challenging to meet and talk with new people, but we’re sure when you meet her you will love her like we do!
When not baking, Diana enjoys video games, BTS, and hanging out with friends.
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Mikaela Seagren
Lead Boulangerie
Meet Mikaela, our Lead Boulangerie! She is the magic behind our focaccia, housemade crackers, and laminated doughs (aka Frenchies, Croissants, and Queens).
Born in Michigan, Mikaela moved around growing up before moving to Texas in 2009. Mikaela was pursuing a degree in biology at Texas A&M when she met her husband, Brandon, in 2018. They got married and decided to start their new journey together in Tyler, Texas and we are so glad they did!
Mikaela is mom to two very spoiled cats. In her spare time she enjoys making artwork, but her passion is to be in the kitchen baking. Her favorite thing to bake is croissants.
If you‘ve been to the bakery during the week, you’ve probably seen Mikaela in action behind the glass- mixing, rolling, or laminating dough.
As Lead Boulangerie, Mikaela oversees production and quality control of all of our dough and savory menu items.
Chelsie Parsons
Lead Barista/Day Baker
Meet Chelsie, Barista and Day Baker extraordinaire!
Growing up in Longview, Chelsie has lived in or around East Texas for most of her life. Beginning her career as a labor and delivery nurse, Chelsie discovered several years later that her true passion was food and cooking. She attended culinary school in New York City, graduating with her degree from the Natural Gourmet Institute! There she learned all about whole food and healthy cooking.
She loves vegan cooking and baking, and working in her home garden growing fresh fruits and vegetables. One of her other hobbies includes food photography (she is amazing). Her animals include chickens and a squirrel!
Emma Jayroe-Gilcrease
Cake Decorator/Day Baker
Emma is originally from East Texas but spent the past few years in Perth, Australia doing missions work with YWAM and then studying patisserie there!
She worked at a French bakery while she was in pastry school, then gained experience in gluten-free and vegan baking at a gluten-free bakery in Perth.
She is a newlywed with one cat named Puddin. She and her Aussie husband moved back to Tyler to be near family.
Toni Lamb
Lunch Prep
Meet Toni (or “Miss T” as we like to call her), our food shopper, prepper, and Beignet Tuesday extraordinaire!
Being in a military family, Toni was born in Munich, Germany. She lived in many different states (and countries) until her family settled in Oklahoma when she was in junior high. She was a stay-at-home mom for many years before getting her BS in Nursing degree in her forties! She practiced Labor and Delivery and Mother-Baby until her retirement in 2013.
Toni is married with two daughters (one being Mandy … owner of Laurel & Pearl), and one son in heaven. She has one younger sister, an older sister-in-love, and 8 grandchildren. She likes sewing, singing in her church choir, and hanging out with friends.
Her favorite things to bake are homemade brownies and Gigi’s Chocolate Cake (Gigi is her mom and the fame behind our Gigi’s Babycakes).
Brionna Ray
Early Bird Baker
This is Brionna, otherwise known as “Bri”. Bri was born in Athens, TX and attended school in Brownsboro from from K-12 until she graduated. After graduating she moved to Tyler.
Bri has a Great Dane named Moose, and three kitties. Her interests include running, being outdoors, and reading.
Prior to working for Laurel & Pearl, Bri had worked in the food industry as a server, but never in the back-of-house. She amazed us at how quickly she picked up on things, and we have loved her great attitude, sweet spirit, and love for the job. She truly loves working as an Overnight Baker/Decorator. Bri is responsible for getting the pastry counter display and patios looking fabulous in the mornings.
Justin Archa
Day Baker/Soups
Meet Justin, our amazing soup maker! He not only makes our daily housemade soups, but makes the fresh focaccia bread served with our soups.
Justin has been in Tyler since he was four years old. He was previously a land surveyor before he decided to pursue his passion of cooking.
In addition to working at Laurel and Pearl, he also works at a Tyler event venue, serving guests for wedding receptions, parties, and the like.
When he’s not working he spends his time with his husband, two kids and granddaughter.
Abbie Siber
Cake Decorator
Abbie is currently a culinary student at TJC studying pastry. She has been baking and decorating for customers through her cottage baking business prior to joining our team.
Maya Gilmore
Barista
Maya lived in Austin Texas before moving to Tyler a few years ago.
She is one of five kids. She has two older brothers and two younger sisters, making her the middle child. She enjoys running track, listening to music, and doing things outdoors! She participated in sports medicine for the Grace football team for two years and enjoyed getting to know the coaches and claiming a front row seat to all of the action.
She has loved baking ever since she was a little girl.
Caroline Holman
Barista
Caroline was born in Columbia, Missouri, and moved to East Texas when she was just a few months old. She’s a Junior at Tyler Legacy High School and hasn’t decided where she wants to go to college yet.
Caroline has an older sister, a younger brother, and a dog named Riley whom she got during the COVID pandemic.
She likes to crochet and knit in her free time, and her favorite things to bake are apple turnovers.
Oakley Chambers
Barista
Oakley was born in Lubbock Texas and has lived in Odessa, Fort Worth, Bullard, and now Tyler. She graduated with her associates degree in Musical Theatre from TJC in 2024.
Oakley is recently married and passions include serving God, worship music, theatre, sewing, embroidery, and coffee so if you stop by, she’ll love to make you a drink.
Kamryn Dixon
Barista
Kamryn is one of our amazing high school baristas. She started out washing dishes and quickly moved to front-of-house barista due to her love of all things coffee and her amazing work ethic.
Kamryn grew up in Tyler and is the middle child of her family. She loves photography and has even covered some local subjects and events professionally. She has two dogs, a Shih Tzu named Shasha and a Cocker Spaniel named Bronx.
Her sweet demeanor is loved and appreciated by our team and our customers at Laurel & Pearl!
Maddie Hotman
Barista
Maddie grew up here in Tyler. She loves to play pickleball, read, and shop in here spare time! Currently she is pursing a degree in Nursing at UT Tyler. She is a proud cat mom to her beautiful cat named Tilly.
