The Sweet Life: Kyle Sexton

When Kyle Sexton stepped into a sushi restaurant in Manhattan for the first time, he had no idea that a singular meal would alter the course of his life. The morning following his first encounter with Japanese culture, Sexton woke up with an insatiable curiosity about Japan, wanting to know everything about the country. “I started learning about the culture, I wore Japanese clothing,” Sexton describes. “I even slept on a futon.” That fascination eventually guided Sexton to Tokyo, where he not only immersed himself in Japanese culture but also became part of the culture himself through an unexpected field: his own bakery, Kyle’s Good Finds.

Originally from York, Pennsylvania, Sexton spent his early adulthood in New York working as a photo finisher. While Sexton is now famed for his delicious baked goods, he says he began baking professionally solely after moving to Japan, with his only ever job in America being processing film. Even working in the photo industry, however, at the back of his mind, Sexton was always interested in food. “Ever since I was young I knew I wanted to be a restaurateur,” he describes. Nonetheless, Sexton never expected that he would become a baking sensation, holding the title of “best carrot cake in Tokyo.”

Sexton moved to Japan 41 years ago with just 300 dollars in his pocket. His journey to Japan wasn’t about visiting or sightseeing for the first time, but a complete dive into the unknown. His first time ever on an airplane was on his flight to Japan. Unlike many who visit Tokyo first before deciding to stay, Sexton arrived with the full intention of living here permanently. Ultimately, the decision became one of the best Sexton had ever made. “I’ve never been homesick before,” he says. “When people ask me if I miss home, I tell them that this is my home.”

Before Sexton’s delicious baked goods became famous around Tokyo, they were famous amongst only his inner circle of friends. After moving to Japan, Sexton worked as an English teacher and baked simply as a hobby, making treats to share with his friends. “At that time, I was just baking carrot cakes to bring to parties or to give to friends,” Sexton recalls. “I wasn’t selling them.” However, what started as a pastime quickly became something much bigger. One day out of the blue, three of Sexton’s friends lent him one million yen each to put towards opening his own bakery, with another finding him a location to open his shop. Impressed by Sexton’s baking skills, his friends encouraged him to take the next step. “They sort of pushed me into it,” he says. “That’s how it happened.”

At the beginning, Sexton describes his wife as having some apprehension, as she worried about the success of the bakery. Sexton, on the other hand, was immediately ready to pave a new path in his life. “I quit my teaching job and started the bakery the very next day,” Sexton describes. “There was no safety net for me to fall back on.”

But the gamble paid off tremendously for Sexton, with his shop remaining a beloved sensation over three decades since opening. Kyle’s Good Finds recently celebrated its 33rd anniversary, serving as a testament to both his dedication and the community’s love for his baked goods. Since the beginning of Kyle’s Good Finds, Sexton has become an integral part of Tokyo’s baking scene as well as his local community of Nakano. 

Despite Sexton’s long tenure, however, he hasn’t changed anything on his menu since opening, staying true to his original baking roots from over three decades ago. In fact, the only real change that he has made to his menu over the years, he notes, is the prices. “My wife keeps telling me to raise the prices,” he says with a laugh. “23 years ago the carrot cake was 300 yen.” 

Unlike most bakeries that produce multiple batches daily, Sexton has a more unique way of operating Kyle’s Good Finds. “I don’t make a lot,” Sexton says, describing his baked goods production. “Generally I’ll make three carrot cakes, two cheese cakes, a little banana bread, a little bit of brownies, and a couple pies during the week.” Sexton doesn’t mass produce his baked goods, but rather makes everything fresh in the morning with hopes of it all selling out by closing time. This system ensures that everything is guaranteed fresh and the highest quality for his customers. “So don’t come into the shop later,” Sexton advises. “Come early!” Coming to the shop early increases the chances of customers getting a taste of Sexton’s award-winning carrot cake that has kept customers coming for decades. 

Sexton holds the title for “Best Carrot Cake in Japan,” but when asked about his cake he laughs and humbly says, “I didn’t say I have the best carrot cake in Japan – my customers did.” Sexton mentions that because of the popularity that his carrot cake has amassed, the press is always asking about it. But what makes his carrot cake stand out? Sexton chuckles at the question. “I don’t know if it’s any different,” he says. “But I grind my own spices.” He explains that cinnamon purchased at the supermarket is too fine, changing the color of his famous carrot cake from orange to brown. Thus, every single one of Sexton’s goods is baked fresh in the morning with ground spices right from his kitchen. Perhaps it is this attention to detail and high regard for every single treat that makes Kyle’s Good Finds so special and beloved. 

Kyle’s Good Finds has amassed millions of views, likes, and comments across multiple different social media platforms. Sexton notes that social media has done so much for Kyle’s Good Finds, bringing him customers from all corners of the globe, searching for a taste of his famous treats. When Kyle’s Good Finds first opened, most of Sexton’s customers were Japanese locals from the Nakano neighborhood. But over the course of the last 15 years with the rise of social media, more foreigners – both international and domestic – have discovered his shop, making it a well known destination for locals and tourists alike. Featured on popular Tokyo-based platforms like @tkymisfits on Instagram and TikTok, Sexton suddenly found himself an internet sensation. “My son told me I was blowing up online, but I thought he was exaggerating,” he says. But his son was indeed correct. Sexton explains that customers continuously come to the shop from the videos that they’ve seen online. 

Sexton explains that it is thanks to his son that Kyle’s Good Finds has become sensational on social media. After decades of running the shop solo, Sexton is slowly transitioning to let his son take over. Last year Sexton took his first vacation in years, leaving the bakery in his son’s hands. “It went pretty well,” he says with a grin. His son has brought in numerous new ideas that have largely contributed to the growing fame of Kyle’s Good Finds including popularizing the bakery on social media as well as creating signature Kyle’s Good Finds T-shirts for customers to purchase. 

Yet for Sexton, success isn’t defined through numbers, but rather through the people who walk through his door. Over the years, Kyle’s Good Finds has become a space creating memories and connections. When asked about his favorite moments running Kyle’s Good Finds, Sexton smiles. “There are a lot of anecdotes,” he says. He fondly recalls a family coming into the shop and the kids immediately exclaiming, “It smells like America in here.” Another memory that stands out to Sexton is when a Japanese man visited the shop with his pregnant wife. “He told me that I made his birthday cake,” Sexton explains. “And he said he wanted me to make his child’s first birthday cake, too.” These special moments are a testimony to Kyle’s Good Finds as more than just a business, but an indispensable part of people’s lives. 

Reflecting on his journey, Sexton acknowledges that he never earned a university degree or followed a conventional path, but he doesn’t view that as a limitation. “Education and everything else is really important, but don’t let that be a drawback for you,” he says. Passion and genuine enjoyment, he notes, are the most important guiding factors. “Just think of something that you love doing,” he advises. For him, that passion was moving to Tokyo: a passion that set everything else in motion. 

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