We recently connected with Ebonie Carzo and have shared our conversation below.
Ebonie , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?
In 2013, I retired from my corporate career at the young age of 29, after working for the company for 7 years. I climbed up the corporate ladder and followed all the prescribed steps, but eventually hit a glass ceiling due to racism and sexism. During the last two years of my corporate career, I started cake decorating for friends, family, and co-workers. This was a skill I learned growing up in my mom’s bakery, but I never intended to follow in her footsteps. I was groomed from an early age to go to school, get good grades, go to college, and then get a government or corporate job. However, when I left my corporate job, I only made $500 in the first year. Despite this, I managed to grow my business tenfold and double my revenue every year after the second year, until the pandemic hit.
Starting a business from scratch has been challenging, especially in terms of money management. Unlike some people who may find it straightforward, I had never learned about money management when I was young, let alone business money management. For instance, during my transition year, several significant financial events occurred that rapidly ate into my savings. I had to repair the transmission of my newly purchased car, which cost me $4,500, and I had to use my savings to cover living expenses because I had no other income. Additionally, I needed to purchase equipment and have enough working capital to fulfill weekly orders.
After four years, I learned that some struggles during the startup phase are inevitable, and life has a way of testing you when you take a significant leap of faith, such as leaving the security of a corporate job to pursue your own venture. In retrospect, I believe that I could have scaled my business faster and reached my first six figures sooner if I knew how to access business credit and invested in perfecting my craft.
From my experience, here are the top three things I learned about money management:
- Hire an accountant who specializes in small businesses, startups, and high-profile companies in their portfolio.
- Read the book “Profit First” multiple times and set up multiple bank accounts with different banks.
- Do your research on Business Credit. There are many FREE resources on social media that can help you tap into lines of credit using your EIN and DUNS#.
These three steps serve three purposes:
-Always have cash on hand for business expenses.
-Have money for bills or personal use.
-Start saving money for future expenses.
Another significant challenge has been managing customer expectations. In my industry, it is crucial to identify the design that the customer has in mind and execute it perfectly. Although this was challenging at first, we have now mastered it by implementing processes that leave no stone unturned. It may be surprising, but we establish such a high level of trust from the beginning that most of our clients are willing to grant us complete creative freedom.
Ebonie , 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?
Hi! I’m Ebonie Carzo. I am a dynamic entrepreneur and celebrity cake designer, with a love for sunflowers, 90s R&B, and business growth strategies. I’ve been an entrepreneur since my early days as a youth, selling candy, custom bracelets, and CD’s. Over the past eight years, I have grown my business into a 5-star award-winning luxury wedding cake bakery, with features on Food Network US and Canada, TLC’s Four Weddings, ASBN network, iHeart Radio, and Atlanta Style Weddings, etc.
My success as a wedding cake designer has led to a speaking career and social presence as a business coach and strategist, where I help startups and small businesses grow their revenue through financial literacy and sales training. I am now on a mission to empower new cake designers to build profitable businesses from their home kitchens.
Growing up in a bakery, I developed a love for baking, but I didn’t want to follow in my mother’s footsteps. I pursued higher education and a corporate sales career out of college. However, after years of working in the corporate world, I realized that my passion was in the art of entrepreneurship and so I took up a career as a custom cake artist so that I could use my experience as a case study to later show others how to be successful. I gave up my steady income, company car and benefits to start my entrepreneurial journey, and it paid off.
As the owner of Atlanta’s premier wedding cake bakery, I am known for creating luxurious cake designs that taste as good as they look. I was recently awarded DeKalb County’s 2022-2023 Small Business of the Year Award for my professional accomplishments and community activism among small businesses in the metro Atlanta region.
Although I’ve faced some difficult times, I always find a way to pivot and adapt. For example, due to the pandemic and current economic recession, I decided not to open a retail bakery, but instead, bought a house where I renovated the basement into a designer luxe cake studio. Now, I conduct all my business there, meet clients, and even host cake decorating classes for children called The Cake Xperiment, and cake classes for adults called Cake & Cocktails, where friends can come and let loose while exploring their cake artistry over wine.
At Virginia Maria Cake Boutique, we specialize in crafting fairytale wedding cakes that serve as the centerpiece of your reception. Our cakes are not only delicious, but also visually stunning and “picture perfect,” ensuring that they look just as amazing as they taste in all your wedding photos and videos. We are honored to provide our services to wedding clients and take great pride in creating cakes that exceed your expectations.
Here are a few reasons why you should choose Virginia Maria Cake Boutique for your wedding cake needs:
• We are proud to be the #1 Black Owned Bakery in Atlanta
• We have received recognition as DeKalb County’s 2022-2023 Small Business of the Year
• Our cakes have been featured in top wedding magazines like Atlanta Style Weddings and Black Nuptials Magazine
• Our cakes have also been showcased on Food Network, Food Network Canada, TLC, and Washington Post.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
Cyber fraud is a seldom-discussed issue in the creative space that I have personally experienced. There have been multiple instances where customers have used stolen credit cards to purchase my products, leading to chargebacks from the original owners. Unfortunately, there is little that can be done to resolve these situations when the card used does not match the client’s name in the system. After getting hit with a string of chargebacks 4 years ago, I called the local authority and they told me that there was nothing that could be done because it was a cyber crime. To better protect my company, I now ensure that the name on the invoice matches the credit card on file. If it does not, we return the payment and notify the client letting them know that the invoice and the card on file must match and to submit a new payment.
More recently, my company was wrongly accused of charging clients’ bank accounts multiple times in the middle of the night for hundreds of dollars. Despite not being responsible for the fraudulent charges, I received countless angry calls and emails from affected individuals across the country. After investigating, it became clear that the charges were coming from a company with a similar name located in Atlanta, GA. It was incredibly frustrating not being able to provide immediate resolution and having to deal with the backlash of something that wasn’t our fault. These experiences made me want to quit on a daily basis, as I was unable to alleviate the suffering of those affected by cyber fraud. Overtime, the calls eventually stopped and business resumed as normal.
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
The book that has had a profound impact on my business is “Profit First” by Mike Michalowicz. After leaving corporate America, I was searching for a solution that could help me apply my commission-based pay structure and daily number analysis to my business’s financial management. However, dealing with less money and managing personal and business expenses without the assistance of an accountant team was challenging. That’s when I discovered “Profit First,” which was a game-changer for me as it provided a clear accounting model that was similar to what we used in corporate America. Unfortunately, an accountant initially discouraged me, calling the idea of having different accounts for different purposes “the dumbest idea ever.” Despite their advice, I struggled for two years with money management until I re-read the book and learned that if an accountant dismisses this system, it’s time to find a new accountant. After making this change, my financial situation improved significantly.
It is important to recognize that in business, you will encounter various challenges. Some you can control and some you cannot. The crucial factor for achieving success is to persevere and continue moving forward, despite any obstacles. I firmly believe that everything that you need to be successful is already within you.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.virginiamarie.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/virginiamariecakes/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/virginiamariecakeboutique/
Image Credits
MRP Weddings Photo & Cinema, VishionsHD Photography