Today we’d like to introduce you to Jay Clifton.
Hi Jay, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Growing up, I had two major passions: rubber ducks and being in the kitchen. All of my life, I have found peace being in a busy and loud kitchen. It was like I could block out a lot of the pain and bother of my childhood by making giant meals (usually for just two people… leftovers for days!) I was always told, though, that to be successful, you needed degrees and to become a doctor or lawyer. Obviously, to them, money=success. So I was working in different fraud analyst positions, and had simply had enough of working in an office and decided to accomplish a dream that I’d neglected: I went to Culinary school at El Centro College at the age of 27 (now 31) and from there, worked my way up to starting a business during the craziest year most of us have ever seen. I thought it was insane to start a baking business during a pandemic, but I did. And only grew from there! I’ve also added in artisanal bath and body products, utilizing a lot of the same skills and techniques I learned in culinary school. I’m best known for my (edible) cupcakes and my (not so edible) cupcake-related soaps. I was even able to combine that aforementioned love of rubber ducks into my company name: The Ugly Duckling Baking and Bubble Co. Garry, our adorable cupcake ugly duckling logo, adorns every baked good and every bath product. He certainly makes ANY time lots of fun!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has definitely not been an easy journey! We officially started in the middle of a pandemic, for starters. On top of that, we had recently moved to Denton and both my husband and I were also working full-time jobs. He was working two of them, even. I would do farmer’s markets on the weekends, baking and crafting until sometimes 2 or 3 in the morning after working just to have fresh products to sell. Along the way, I also started to pick up special orders for both bath products and baked goods. All of our products are made fresh and made from scratch, so it’s a lot longer of a process than it is for commercial-sized bakeries. My husband and I both are still working, but I think we’ve gotten into a groove. We had to take a break during the winter in order to create more stock and get prepared to tackle even bigger projects. The hardest part of any start-up business, though, is planning and organization. That was a major difficulty for us at first!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m a trained culinarian that specializes in cupcakes and I use that art form in different media, mainly being artisanal soaps and bath products. I focus on fresh, from-scratch flavors and all-natural ingredients because I personally don’t want to buy a handcrafted product that still has all of the same chemicals and preservatives that the commercial companies use, and I’m pretty sure most people are the same way! And that goes for both the baking AND the bubble side of my business! I learned through career and technical education, that being culinary arts school for me, and through the student organization SkillsUSA how to be a leader in the workforce. I took all that I learned as a national officer for that organization and as a student at El Centro college’s culinary program to heart and try to utilize that every single day, whether it be in my business or in my day job. Those same technical skills, workplace skills, and personal skills really gave me a foundation to help me expand myself and to hopefully expand my business.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
Thankfully, El Centro College has provided me with a truckload of mentors. I have found two main mentors, and one of them gave me great advice that I quote almost daily: Every day, meet three new people, learn two new skills/pieces of knowledge, and face one fear. (Thanks, Sheila!) Another one of my mentors is a classmate of mine. Her passion and talent, not to mention her enthusiastic willingness to help and teach others, is a massive inspiration for me. Thuy, you’re amazing! So I guess my biggest piece of advice for networking and getting a mentor is simple. Listen and Learn. Listen to what others with experience have to say, and learn how to be like them while still maintaining your own personality. Mentors might not present as a mentor at first, but if you listen and learn you are sure to find one (or more!)
Pricing:
- Cupcakes go for 12 for 20 dollars, or a half dozen for 12 dollars.
- Custom soap loaves, which include scent and 2 color swirl, go for 30 dollars (10 bars of soap.)
- Bread goes for 5 dollars a loaf/dozen rolls.
Contact Info:
- Email: Info.udbc@gmail.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheUglyDucklingBakingCompany/
