Today we’d like to introduce you to Kara Nelsen.
Kara, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I first developed an interest in baking shortly after getting married, when my pie-loving husband requested a cherry pie for Thanksgiving. I had never made anything more than boxed cake before, but we were both impressed at how it turned out. After that initial pie, I quickly began experimenting with any new pie, cake, and cookie recipes I could get my hands on.
As I began to study the art of baking, I was astounded at how remarkable a cake could be decorated but found that I was constantly underwhelmed by the taste of professional cakes that I tried. It seemed like you could either find something that looked amazing, but didn’t taste great, or find something that tasted great but wasn’t one of those incredible works of art. I knew there had to be a way to marry taste and design together, so I set out to learn how to make cakes that were delicious works of art.
I began by baking and decorating dream cakes for my children’s birthdays. It wasn’t long before other parents started to ask me where I’d gotten my “beautiful cakes.” That was when I started to realize that I could turn this into a successful business and started to sell cakes to friends and acquaintances.
From there, I founded Kara’s Bake Shoppe and began selling cookies, cupcakes, cake pops, pies, and breads at a local farmer’s market. Between the exposure I received at the market and word of mouth referrals, my business grew rapidly. I received so many custom cake and cookie orders that I eventually had to make the tough decision to stop selling at the farmer’s market, despite how much I enjoyed being part of the community.
I have been in business for six years now, and I treasure the opportunity I have to be a small but important part of so many people’s lives as they celebrate their marriages, babies, birthdays, graduations, and more.
Great, 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?
Oh, definitely not! One of my biggest struggles has been a work-life balance. As a mom of five, and a business owner, I feel like I’m always struggling to keep all the balls in the air. My other challenge has been managing the business side of my business. I would happily spend my days working on making beautiful cakes, but someone has to answer the phone calls, respond to the messages, book the cakes, send the invoices, etc. Maybe one day I’ll be able to entrust those tasks to someone else, but for now, I am a one woman business, which certainly keeps me busy!
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Kara’s Bake Shoppe – what should we know?
Kara’s Bake Shoppe specializes in creating edible works of art that taste even better than they look. My business is unique in that everything I make is completely from scratch; I never use any cake mixes, sleeves of fruit filling, or buckets of frosting…ever! Everything is fresh and from scratch every single time.
While it is more work, I will never tire of hearing the customer tell me that the cake I made was the best cake they’ve ever had in their life. It always makes me smile, and reminds me why I love doing what I do!
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
I think I owe a lot of my success to my ability to survive extreme sleep deprivation as I bake all day and night! 😉
All joking aside, I feel like my willingness to take risks and stretch myself creatively is a huge part of my success. I get asked all the time “Have you ever done a _____ cake?” or “Can you do this cake?” Sometimes it’s a design or technique that I’ve never done, but I will always push myself out of my comfort zone to try something new.
Pricing:
- $5.00/serving starting price for custom cakes
- $36/dozen starting price for custom cookies
Contact Info:
- Website: www.karasbakeshoppe.com
- Phone: 940-765-7948
- Email: karasbakeshoppe@gmail.com
- Instagram: @karasbakeshoppe
- Facebook: http://facebook.com/karasbakeshoppe
Image Credit:
Abbie Mae Photography, Drawing with Light Photography, Shawna Faith Photo, Marissa Ann Photography
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