We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Artesa Anderson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Artesa, appreciate you joining us today. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?
As I was building my business model I went through several names that friends and family suggested might be a good fit. During discussions on the products, I kept referring to them as sweet boozy cakes or boozy cakes. After a few times of repeating this reference I thought about what I was saying and decided that sweet boozy cakes was a complete statement for my products. They are sweet with a touch of booze and they are mini cakes. Once I realized that this name embodied my complete product, I never looked back.
Artesa, 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?
I started this business after friends and family mentioned that they loved my annual Christmas rum cakes that I would give out as gifts. I began Sweet Boozy Cakes in January 2021. My goal when I opened was to simply provide Tallahassee with the opportunity to order regular rum cakes and mini versions of different alcohol cakes on a regular basis. I’ve been overwhelmed at the love and joy my customers express every time they taste my cakes and other treats. I am most proud of the fact that I took a simple concept and turned it into a vision of a future that I can see myself doing for the rest of my life. Each day we are growing and finding new ways to serve our customers and improve our products. We have expanded to decadent puddings and gourmet cookies. We also are trying to build up our current location to become a local lunch spot since we have ventured into a full service cafe serving chicken finger baskets, fried chicken wings and Delicious BBQ supplied by our partner Da Gee Spot. Stay tuned to watch the growth and expansion of Sweet Boozy Cakes Bakery and Cafe!
How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?
Social media engagement is vital to the growth of my business. I have been able to reach many new customers and keep them coming back to try new flavors by promoting events, especially First Friday at my shop. I also use email campaigns, marketing contests for event , alerts for new available products and birthday give aways. When my customers come in my shop I try to greet them and let them know the uniqueness of my product and let them sample the puddings that we have available for sale. The samples usually end in a sale and this keeps customers coming back.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
When I started this business back in 2021 I had been married for 28 years and my husband was supporting my business. Last year he died suddenly so I was left to figure things out on my own. On top of that, we have a special needs daughter that requires a lot of time and attention. When he died I wasn’t sure if I could continue to run my business and work my full time job to make ends meet. Not only have I been able to continue my business but we have grown in leaps and bounds over the last year and my kids and I are thriving. I credit the huge support of friends and family with helping me to stay positive and support me by volunteering at my shop every First Friday and event days so that I can keep my labor costs low. This last year was hard but it taught me that when you really love what you do your customers will feel that in your product. Also I learned that leaning on your support system will help you to make it through the rough times. I’m thankful for them and to God for giving me the strength to carry on.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sweetboozycakes.com
- Instagram: #sweetboozycakestally
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sweetboozycakestally/
- Yelp: https://yelp.to/Xh22kNKi8e
- Other: TikTok: @sweetboozycakesta