How it started:
Where do I begin with talking business? Well, I started baking in 2016 out of my small apartment. At the time my business was called, Cee’s Sweets and Treats. I remember my first three tier cake for a baby shower. This was my first time ever having to make decorations from scratch, use fondant on a cake, stack a cake; I mean the list goes on. But I was confident I could do it and I surely got it done. It was a very long day of baking and decorating. My husband helped me, and we were up until 3am! Thank God we didn’t have work the next day. I delivered it to the client and she’s actually still a client of mine till this day! 🙂
From there, my business continued to grow. I used to keep track of how much I made each month for the first couple of years; just writing it down a looseleaf paper. My first year I made $2,500, my second year I made $15,000, my third year I made $32,000, and then Covid hit. Dun dun dun! That sure did suck. I wasn’t able to surpass my goal during Covid, but that didn’t stop many customers from ordering their cakes. By the time Covid hit, I was also in a new apartment, much bigger kitchen too, I became a mommy by December of 2020, and sure enough my clients kept ordering and supporting! I still have my loyal clients until this day, and they’re greatly appreciated.
Fast forward to 2022, I was working in the bank and still taking cake orders. But now, I had a one-year-old to tend to. Trying to manage a full-time job, a side hustle, and a baby was a lot, so one of those jobs had to go. This was such a scary decision to make, but I decided to follow my dreams and open a custom cake shop. Now this is where the roller coaster begins!
So, January 2022 I quit my full-time job at the bank and got straight to work. I rebranded my business as Charmaine’s Cake Boutique which was not easy because I lost a few customers that didn’t know I rebranded. I found a location that I fell in love with because it was so spacious, and the monthly rent was amazing. However, it was just an open empty space, so I had to get plumbing done to install a sink, hire an electrician to make some changes to an outlet so I can plug in my electrical oven, my husband and father-in-law built my countertops (saved a large expense there), I had to order all of my supplies and materials such as working tables, display cases, refrigerators, etc., and then of course doll up the place to my desired liking. Let’s not forget all those lovely licenses that’s required, yay! You could only imagine the amount of money I spent; I still ask myself till this day, how the heck did I do it? But to be transparent with you, I always say I wish I waited because I depleted everything that I had. Depleted my savings, credit cards, and even took out a loan; I can tell you and so can others, that was not the smartest thing to do. But I had a dream, and I was tired of waiting for it, so I made it happen. I’m sure many can relate.
I wanted to open by April of 2022, but little did I know that there was still so much work to be done, I ended up pushing it to June of 2022. That didn’t happen either, instead I found out in May that I was 2 months pregnant. Holy sh*t, right? Yea, I said the same thing! I was frantic and panicking because I quit my job, the shop isn’t open yet, I’m already taking care of a one-year-old, I’m spending money every day just to get the shop open, and then the process eventually slowed down because I was always so tired and there was but so much my husband could do without help, I was beyond stressed. And if you read my “Infertility is Ugly” blog, then you know that I have premature ovarian failure and had to take it easy. My due date was approaching fast which was around Thanksgiving. I told myself I’ll let the holiday’s pass by and then I’ll get back to work. And that’s exactly what I did.
How it’s going:
After the New Year I buckled down on the finishing touches, decorating, and all that cute stuff. By March I applied for my food service establishment license and by April 2023 I finally had my grand opening. My first year of business in the storefront I made double the amount of what I made year three baking at home; I couldn’t believe it. But even though business was good, I still had to worry about all this business debt that I created for myself which caused immediate stress all over again. So, I began thinking of cake sales and other ways to make money for the business, jotting down ideas to attract more clients. Then a lightbulb switched, and I discovered pop-up shops and festivals.
My first pop-up shop was in June 2024, called Sip. Shop. Eat. I was definitely shooting my shot here because I’ve never done this before, and I didn’t know how things would turnout, but boy oh boy! It was a two-day event, and I sold $1,800 worth of goodies! I sold a huge variety of cupcakes, brownies, cookies, banana bread, vegan cakes, crumb cakes, banana pudding, the list goes on! I was afraid I made too much but Sip. Shop. Eat. did not disappoint! From there I continued these pop-up events for the remaining time of the year, and it actually brought in an extra $10,000+ to my sales. I was beyond grateful and definitely look forward to attending more pop-up events and festivals for 2025.
Speaking of 2025, I also decided to add to my business and created an Etsy Shop called Crafted by C. Marie and this blog, The Life of C. Marie. In my Etsy Shop I sell custom cake toppers, hard copy invitations, and digital products. The digital products I sell are invitations, coloring pages, and soon to come, digital journals and planners. This is a new journey, and I pray it brings in great success and new opportunities. I’ve been wanting to add to my business for a while and since my husband gifted me a Cricut machine for Christmas, I figured why not start now? I enjoy being crafty and I’m a little tech savvy so it’s the best of both worlds in my opinion. I’ll attach my Etsy Shop here: https://craftedbycmarie.etsy.com
I have so much more to share about owning a business. There’s so many highs and lows to being a running a custom cake shop, you just have to be strong enough to fight through it. Mark Hyatt once said, “You can’t fail if you don’t quit. You can’t succeed if you don’t start.” I push myself every day to not quit, because it’s definitely not easy. Owning a business is no walk in the park no matter what industry you’re in, but it does not mean you should not follow your dreams. It’s only year 3 of my shop being open and as people say, new businesses do struggle the first three years. I can say this though, in 2024 I dropped so much debt and watched my credit score jump back up 40 points. I was so happy to see that change. It made me realize that this business is finally paying off. When I look at those highs and look at the bigger picture, it reminds to just keeping fighting and pushing through. I get to say, “wow, I really did it.” It may not get easier, but it will get better!
You can check out my custom cake shop on Instagram Charmaine- Weddings and Celebration Cakes (@charmainescakeboutique) • Instagram photos and videos and my website Home | Charmaine’s Cake Boutique Thank You! Stay tuned for more blogs about my journey as a business owner!
