Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Amy Tam. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Amy, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

Cake Girl began from my home kitchen. Growing up in the Eastside of Los Angeles, at the time there were very few vegan & gluten-free bakery options without having to travel to the Westside. This inspired me to start baking sweets that were completely vegan and gluten-free in addition to being free from soy and nut products. I slowly began to bake for family and friends, which led to pop-up events, selling wholesale to coffee shops and eventually opening a small vegan & gluten-free bakery inside of Saint Louis Pharmacy in Boyle Heights.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Prior to Cake Girl, I’ve always worked in the food industry baking for other established restaurants and bakeries. Working in the food industry, I noticed often establishments would use an all purpose gluten-free flour blend that did not necessarily work as a cup for cup substitute to gluten-free baking. This made me realize that when it came to baking vegan & gluten-free, Cake Girl will have its own custom gluten-free flour blend. Our custom gluten-free flour blend is what helps our cupcakes and baked cake donuts keep leavened and moist.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

Cake Girl started out as a vegan & gluten-free home baking project with a small menu. After a decade of baking for friends & family, selling at pop-up events and distributing to coffee shops, in 2018 Cake Girl opened inside of Saint Louis Pharmacy, occupying what used be a vintage soda fountain counter. Our menu have expanded with customer favorites like the Strawberry Churro Cupcake, Hostess Cream Filled Cupcake, Hibiscus Lemon Donut, Matcha Cake Donut to experimenting with different flavor profile which allows us to offer a cupcake of the month and cupcake of the week.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

Being a vegan & gluten-free bakery, we are also free from soy and nut products. Many of our clientele have multiple allergies and are able to have our baked goods. The majority of our clients are local within the community and others travel as far from Orange County and San Fernando Valley.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.hellocakegirl.com
• Instagram: hellocakegirl