We recently connected with Ana Ingram and have shared our conversation below.

Ana, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

I started Tere’s Cake Face because of my love of baking. That love started in my grandmother’s kitchen what now seems a million years ago. I didn’t initially start out thinking I would make custom cakes and sell them but I believe that entrepreneurial drive was born with me. My great-grandfather was an entrepreneur. Despite whatever challenges he may have faced as a young man in East Texas in the late 1800’s, early 1900’s, he became a landowner, business owner, farmer and laid the foundation for generations to come after him. My father and uncle were also an entrepreneurs. Both owned landscaping businesses that are highly labor intensive, so I believe the stage was more than set for me to take the step of owning my own business. Watching each one of them strive to have independence in their business pushed me in the direction of ownership.

Quality products and customer service are the two factors that drive me in this business. Making money is great but what about the feeling of giving someone something special on a special day just for them? That is priceless. Making a product that you can stand by also has no price tag. That is what my mission is.

Ana, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Who is Ana? I’m a lot of things. I am a mother, a wife, a business owner/partner, a creative, a Crohn’s Disease survivor, and a believer.

I am a Texas native. I left Texas to attend and graduate from Howard University in Washington, D.C. I had a great career in the Maryland area and recently relocated to the Atlanta area with my family. My husband and I are working together together to expand our businesses. I have had Crohn’s Disease, an inflammatory bowel disease for over 15 years. Battling this chronic illness has definitely been challenging, even to this day, but being a survivor means I am not giving up.

Years ago, I was baking for friends and co-workers whenever there was a special event. It wasn’t until my daughter, Tereana was born, that Tere’s Cake Face was created. Why not name the thing I love to do the most after the person I love the most. When people ask if I just bake cakes, I say “no.” I often say no because baking is just one facet of the creative process it takes to create a custom cake design.

I create custom designed cakes. I’m an artist and the kitchen is my studio. Each one of my clients receives a cake that is baked and designed specifically for them. I always tell clients that I do not duplicate cakes but I am always happy to incorporate elements from a design that they’ve seen. I wanted them to have something that is made just for them. The excitement on their faces when they see their cakes are the real reward for me.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I believe that in many instances in our lives, we learn that we may trip but we don’t always have to fall. I don’t share this story often but I’ll share it today. I did not grow up with either of my parents making a lot of money. When it was time to start looking at colleges, my heart was set on Howard University. Graduating from Howard had been my dream since I was 5. Once I found out that I had been accepted, I knew that I would have to figure out how I was going to pay tuition as there was no college fund that had been put aside for me. Once there, I ran into a financial aid issue that would have meant that I would have had to leave college and possibly not return. I called as many people as I could that could possibly help. One person told me that I needed to give up and go home. Those words stung me but also pushed me. After some determination, I was able to secure the funding I needed to stay in school and eventually graduate. During my entire collegiate experience, I worked a full time job at night and went to school during the day. I did miss out on a lot of things but those words of “give up and go home” continued to push me to work hard for my degree, the first in my family.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

Customer service is everything to a business. I believe it can make or break your reputation as a business. I care about each of my clients and I want them to have a top-notch experience with my services. A lot of people will think “it’s just cake” but it’s a part of the entire experience. Whether it’s 200 person wedding or an intimate birthday celebration, each client should feel as though there was care and love put into their product. I share with clients that the last thing they should have to stress over is their cake or desserts. Leave that stress to me. I truly mean that. People can tell when you really care about your craft and care about their experience with it. I’m also willing to work with clients. Small changes and things often come up. I am very fortunate to have the flexibility to accommodate those needs and changes. Honesty is another thing that has helped build reputation. I don’t lie to clients about being able to do things that aren’t in my skillset. It’s ok not to be able to do everything out there. You can have a speciality and that’s ok. I want a client to get what they paid for and to be happy with it so if it’s not something I’m able to do, I’m more than happy to refer them to someone who can or work to achieve what they want within my skillset.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.terescakeface.com
• Instagram: Terescakeface
• Facebook: Tere’s Cake Face, LLC
• Twitter: CCrohnie

Image Credits
KatyMurryPhotography