Sweet Pleasures Bakery

My name is Kirsten Carpenter. I'm the owner of a cottage bakery in Mansfield, Ohio called Guilty Pleasures Bakery. I've been in business since July of this year. How did you get started and why a bakery? I had been baking for friends and family for the last three years and everybody said that I should open my own bakery. So I took a leap and I opened in July. It's been going really well. I only accept so many orders because it is just me and I am just starting out. But I'm really hoping to grow my clientele and grow my business. And how did you come up with the name of the bakery? I am a sucker for a sweet treat and I always feel a little guilty for eating so many of them. So it just felt fitting. What makes your bakery unique? What kind of products do you have compared to others in the surrounding area? What sets you apart? So I do a lot of custom cakes and cupcakes. I also do custom cake pops. I just did a set for a esthetician. They were little spa girls. They had little towels on their heads. They looked really cute. But I do a lot of So I think that sets me apart from a lot of the other bakeries in this area. What's the most popular thing that people come to you for? Definitely my custom cakes. So those are really, really popular. And then I do a lot of smash cakes for And do you do all sizes of everything or what kind of sizing do you have? So I offer six inch round cakes and eight inch round cakes along with eight inch heart cakes. So I have a variety of sizes. What's your favorite item that you made? I really love the cake pops. They're so cute. And they're a smaller snack. So I feel a little less guilty for eating them. I guess what advice would you give to someone in your place thinking about starting a bakery or starting a business themselves? I would say just j Don't bite off more than you can chew though. Start small and make sure that you have a very select menu so that you're not overwhelming yourself. Because it can be crazy at times, especially when you accept more orders than you're used to. What's the most rewarding part of being a bakery owner? I love getting pictures from clients when they've got their little babies with their smash cakes. I just did a 16th birthday burnaway cake and it was really awesome to see their reactions. It was awesome. They include cake pops, cut out cookies, and then mini brownie bites and they'll all be decorated in Valentine's Day theme and they are $30 each. I do have a Facebook page. It's Guilty Pleasures Bakery and you can contact me there. It has all of my phone n