We recently connected with Lauren Warmke and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Lauren, thanks for joining us today. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

Success is such a personal vision, it’s incredibly different for everyone. I created a place to have a job everyday, that’s a success. But as my business has grown success is beginning to look very different to me. I have a mentor who is doing millions in revenue, that’s not my goal, never has been. To me, this year at least, success will be going on vacation and not having to shut down my shop.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a forty-something self taught baker, cake decorator, and small business owner. My shop is located in the same town I grew up in and live in. I began baking when my daughter was little and quickly outgrew my home kitchen. I am self taught through many failures, online classes, and cookbooks.
In 2015 I moved to the corner of a friend’s catering kitchen so that I could participate in a local farmers market. This was a turning point. The market helped customers see my business as a trustworthy and reliable brand. There were some missteps but eventually I landed in my very own brick and mortar bakeshop.
In 2019 I opened Simply Sweets Cake Studio, hoping it would be a space for custom cake creation and classes. Things changed and the business evolved in ways I never imagined. Hillsborough needed a bakeshop, so I opened for retail on Saturdays to serve and introduce myself to my community. Ironically this was the perfect business model to survive the impending pandemic. It’s still the business model I operate today, though our offerings have grown.
We recently added Ready to Order Cakes, to complete our line up of limited classes, custom cakes, cookies, and french macarons. Our Ready to Order line, ready in 48 hours, gives our customers access to our high quality scratch made cakes for even last minute events and celebrations. Since our custom cakes require 2-3 weeks notice this helps us serve everyone, even those who plan like I do, at the last minute.
I started Simply Sweets wanting to offer my community a destination bakeshop, a weekly tradition, and I think we’ve succeeded in that mission. What many customers don’t know is that we are one of the few bakeries that bake and make everything on our menu from scratch. From our cakes, buttercream, and fillings to our cinnamon rolls, cookies, and french macarons, each product is made 100% from scratch by hand. This takes us more time and means we can produce less than other bakers in the area but the quality for sure makes up for it.

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

My bakery opened in 2019. In September 2019 we opened to the public for retail and a very short 7 months later the pandemic hit. Everywhere I looked businesses were pausing. For my shop that meant cancellations, refunding custom orders, and closing, temporarily. I knew this couldn’t be it, along with my tribe of baking best friends we put our heads together and got to work. The rules and restrictions were so confusing surrounding COVID-19 but eventually we came up with a plan to still serve our customers from a distance. Many bakeshops including mine started offering Quarantine Treat Boxes as well as accepting donations for First Responder Treat Boxes. The quarantine treat boxes were ordered online and picked up at the shop via curbside with zero contact. The donation boxes were delivered to area hospitals by me and a few of my customers. The quarantine boxes were a huge success and 2020 became a successful year instead of what could have been.
I am so thankful that my shop was able to adjust and move forward.

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

I started baking for fun. To celebrate birthdays and make them memorable for my children. As a self proclaimed serial hobbyist this was just my next thing, it quickly turned into an obsession. I was consuming every piece of information on baking and decorating. There were a lot of failures and ugly french macarons and cake-tastrophes luckily they were all still delicious. Somewhere along the way friends and acquaintances started telling me to open a business. Which may not have been the best advice but I took the leap and started looking for a commercial kitchen space. I found a space and a business mentor and became official in 2015. It took a lot of things to get here today, in my dream bakeshop, and luck is not one of them. The road to where my shop is in 2024 is slightly different than I imagined in 2015 but being a reliable consistent part of the community has helped move me forward.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.simplysweetsbylauren.com/#/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simplysweetsbylauren/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SSbyLauren/

Image Credits
Photo of Myself – MJ Narula