We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Saniya Khalid. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Saniya below.

Saniya, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you come up with the idea for your business?

I was never a baker, infact im a pharmacy graduate, and with that degree i was looking for further studies options, we have plans but god has different plans for us. Soon after i got married, i was blessed with 2 kids one after the other.. And having 2 kids back to back i never had time to get back to studies and i wanted to spend my time with my husband and kids.
About 3-4 years later, Covid hit us and we all were in the lockdown phase. So being home and kids growing up i thought of developing a hobby for myself, where i can get busy with.

I always loved plating food and presenting it in a beautiful way, and somehow i came across beautiful cake decorating videos on youtube and pinterest and that hooked my interest. Being home i used to watch hours of those decorating videos, still not knowing how to bake. Also the grocery store aisles of baking really inspired me, i started buying those cute little spatulas, piping tips and all decirating accessories. And one day started baking and decorating cakes/cupcakes.

There was always a sense of accomplishment when i completed decorating a cake or learnt a new skill in baking, and this kept me going.

My priority has always been my family, so i used to practice on my baking skills early morning around 6am, when my kids/family would still be sleeping, that way i got my me time and invested time on my skills.

And very soon i got confident enough with my talent and decided to turn my passion/hobby into a business.

I started with my close friends and family and would make treats for them because i needed experience and gradually i started getting exposure.
But since Feb 2024, i made it as a full time work for myself, when both my kids went to school and i had plenty of time at hand to make it work.

A few things that sets me apart from other bakers is my frosting taste, i use italian meringue buttercream which is way lighter,creamier and less sweeter than ameeican buttercream which people are always asking for.
My piping and designs are not just neat and aesthetic, but they are delicious and made with high quality ingredients and packaged in elegant luxurios packaging( Im bery big on clear packaging which showcases my products through).

Saniya, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My Custom Cake specialize in hand made delicious and aesthetic (pinterest worthy desserts) . Many times desserts are too sweet for our taste that we dont feel like eating the entire thing, but my desserts are different , the cream is less sweeter and lighter in taste, that we are always sold out on events.
I work closely with my clients to bring their vision to life. I not only make themed cakes, but also cupcakes,brownies, dessert cups,cookies, cakesicles, entire dessert table spread.
I have repeat clients because of the unique looking and delicious desserts i make.
Ordering process is simple through my website/email and we have fairly reasonably priced desserts comparatively in houston area.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

My friend and family are aware about the fact that if i take up a task or put my head to something then i strive to complete it no matter what. In our language we call it “junooni” means passionate,sheer enthusiasm.

This Ramadan & Eid, which just passed 3days back, i had multiples of orders throught the month if Ramadan and specifically for Eid.
Ramadan in itself is a very busy month with a month full of fasting from from dawn to dusk, we are low on energy and quite sleep deprived cz of our schedules. But i also believe its a month full of blessings, which i wintnessed again through my business this time. With a constant inflow of orders and love and support from my clients and followers.
Just for Eid day i had over 500 cupcakes to bake, along with tiered cake and multiples of mini cakes. Along with baking and decorating these i had to do prepare hundreds of boxes for them which is a very exhausting task. Being a small business owner, its very unpredictable with orders, hence everything becomes a last minute prep, and always striving to offer fresh quality products it got very difficult to complete those orders right on time for Eid.
But i always believed in the power of God, and with His help i felt like i complete the biggest and most difficult of orders on time, inspite of fasting and lack of sleep.

These kind of push throughs gives me a lot of strength and confidence, and makes me realize the potential God has put in me. #blessed #greatful

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Consistency, quality work and creativity helped me build a reputation within the market.
I started off with attending farmers markets/pop up events and also collaborated with a few influencers/content creators to showcase my work.
Word of mouth helps small businesses the most. Although i still struggle with getting followers on social media,maybe cz all my content and growth is all organic. No fake or paid followers here.

But honestly its difficult to run a small business and at the same time be active amd manage your social media accounts, its never been easy, but im working on it and gradually growing my business.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.mycustomcake.com
• Instagram: Mycustomcake_htx
• Other: Email: [email protected]