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

Isabel , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit with a desire to run my own business. In high school, I was convinced that this business would be in the fashion industry.  I went to fashion school and finished with a BA in business. I worked in the fashion industry for about 13 years and as exciting as it was, I realized it wasn’t as fulfilling as I had hoped. I learned tremendously during that time with the help of incredible mentorship, travel, and work experience in the field. In 2008, I decided to combine all that business knowledge with my love for baking. I expressed the idea of following a new career path to my mom. She gave me her blessing and encouraged me by saying that I would accomplish anything I set my mind to. At the time, I had just been promoted, so I had to have a conversation with my boss. I told him that I had decided to go to culinary school to open a bakery. He was very supportive and not only let me keep my new role, but also graciously worked around my new school schedule. While working full-time, I went to culinary school and finished the Patisserie program within 9 months. The dedication required to switch those career paths was intense. I was either working or in school for 9 months straight. Once I finished school, I continued to work in the fashion industry and made cakes for family and friends on the weekends; buying baking supplies and equipment as needed. I saved money diligently until I was finally ready to start looking for a retail location for my bakery. To keep myself accountable, I began telling friends and family that my goal was to open my bakery by the end of 2013. I opened Sweet Nothings Cake Shop in December of 2013. With patience and a little luck, I was able to find a location that was restaurant ready. The site had previously been a bakery, so I was able to buy the existing equipment and just had some minor construction to complete before opening. The initial months were difficult as I worked day and night for about 6 months. I could not have done it without the support of my family. I decided to open a bakery without ever having worked in one. Having had about four years of experience in retail management, I knew I could handle the customer service aspect but running a kitchen along with everything else required to run a business was much more work than I had anticipated. It was and is an absolute labor of love. I now have an amazing staff and procedures in place that have helped streamline the business. With so much gratitude, I am approaching my 10-year anniversary. 

Isabel , 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?

I own and manage a bakery called Sweet Nothings Cake Shop. I love the creative aspect of baking and making customized cakes. At my shop we offer a daily and seasonal selection of cupcakes, cookies, and cake pops, specializing in cakes and desserts by custom order. We love working with every customer to help bring their theme and design ideas to life for any special occasion. We bake all our goods from scratch and with customer satisfaction as our guide, we strive to exceed expectations.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I would describe owning a business as a roller coaster ride. Some days you reap all the benefits of your hard work and some days it seems like nothing is enough. About 4 years into owning my bakery, I reached a point where I missed travel, the financial security and the perks that came with my previous position in the corporate fashion industry. So much so, that I contacted my old boss for a meeting. We met and I expressed a possible interest in coming back to work for him and potentially closing my shop. This person who was and continues to be a mentor in my life said, “No, you’re not done.” I insisted that I was seriously considering it and he said he had nothing for me because he knew I still had more to do with my bakery. I am so thankful for his rejection, since then my business has doubled. Who knows what would have happened had he offered me a position. My advice is, if you have the love for it, keep going and working hard at it, the money will come.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

I have been a manager in some form since I was 18 years old. I have had very little turnover within my staff, and I would attribute that to respecting them as equals. I’ve been open for almost 10 years and still wash dishes and mop alongside my team. I also love to teach and train them where I can and I’m open to feedback or ideas they may have in return. Open communication is extremely important and I want my staff to always feel that they are being heard. We all spend so much time with each other while on the clock and I want each of them to enjoy coming to work every day.

Contact Info:

• Website: [email protected]
• Instagram: @sweetnothingscakeshop
• Facebook: Facebook.com/sweetnothingscakeshop
• Yelp: Sweet Nothings Cake Shop