Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Kayla Morris, owner of Gingersnaps Bakery, located in Lincoln, RI, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We are a neighborhood bakery that offers scratch-made desserts and custom cakes. We have a wide variety of customers, but we definitely cater to the people in our community, which is largely made up of families!
Tell us about yourself
I started decorating cakes as a young kid with my mom, who would make all of the birthday cakes for our family members. I decided to turn it into my career by the time I was in high school. After culinary school and working in the industry as a cake decorator and baker, I decided it was time to start my own business. I found a spot in my hometown and opened it in January 2019! My customers and my staff motivate me every day, especially on the long exhausting days when I wish I could just go home! But knowing that our customers love our product and are expecting it keeps me motivated to keep going. I am also incredibly lucky to have a great hardworking team who keeps morale up, and we always manage to have fun even when we have been working for 14+ hours!
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Ever since the bakery turned 1 in January 2020, I have felt like the world has been throwing me curveballs! We quickly hit the pandemic and are now dealing with the constant fluctuation of pricing, inflation, and supply issues. Surviving those things alone has felt like a major accomplishment, and we are grateful to our customers for continuously coming back to keep us going!
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
It is hard!! I have had a few young kids come to me for advice because they want to open a bakery, and the first thing I always say is, if you can see yourself doing something else with your life, try that first! It is not easy to be a business owner and especially in the food service industry. You have to wear all the hats and work a lot, especially over holidays and weekends! You have to be willing to sacrifice a lot of your personal life and time off to get your business off the ground and to keep it afloat. So you are tired most of the time!
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
As I had mentioned before, if you have other interests or other careers you would like to try, do it first! Make sure this is what you really want! Second, I would say work in your industry for a while before doing it yourself. You can learn a lot about what you do and don't want for your own business. So stay observant and always learn from those job experiences. Lastly, don't go grow too fast. It will be tempting when money comes in and opportunities to grow come up, but you have to go slow and steady. Business ebbs and flows, so you have to be cautious about where you put your time and energy.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.gingersnapsbakeryri.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gingersnapsbakeryri
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gingersnapsbakery_ri/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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