We were lucky to catch up with Kayla Harris recently and have shared our conversation below.
Kayla , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your business sooner or later
Omg, yes!! I wish I would’ve started way sooner. I started in 2019 while I was working as a Men’s Sales Associate at Belk of Florence. Growing up I never thought I would’ve made baking into a business. I think if I started sooner rather than later then I would’ve been further along and I would’ve had a bakery by now. If i started sooner I would’ve had way more time to practice and perfect my craft. I most likely would’ve went to culinary school after I graduated high school instead of jumping right into the workforce.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is Kayla Harris. I am a 28 year old baker from Florence, SC. I started baking when I was at home one day. My best friend & I were sitting at my house and we said we wanted to make something so we got into the kitchen and I made a pan of chocolate chip brownies. I can make cakes, cupcakes, cookies and honestly any treats that you like I am willing to try. I could get customers to message me about somebody else not being able to make something for them.. I’d tell them to let me know what they would want, and if I could, most likely could, I would make it for them with no problem. I am mostly proud of myself for getting this far with my business, I never thought I would’ve made it this far. I have gotten myself out to the public by doing pop-up shops, birthdays parties, and weddings.. I want my current customers and future customers to know that no matter how big or how small your request may be just message me and we can always figure something out – you will not be disappointed.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
Luckily when I started my business, I was already working. I wasn’t making too much money, but it was enough to help me get started with the little things like buying boxes and ingredients as needed. As the months progressed, I started getting more customers by the day and while I was without a job that baking paid for my bills over a two month span.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
One thing that helped me was basically word to mouth. My friends and family would tell their friends and coworkers about me, then they’d come home with orders for me, lol. Also, by me just baking different things daily and posting them. I would make cookies early in the morning and post them on social media then I’d get a few offers within the hour.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kaylajs_kreations?igsh=MXZ6ZWhuazMzN2owMQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1WrxivUFdS/?mibextid=wwXIfr
