We recently connected with Misha Parris and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Misha , thanks for joining us today. What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?

I would hope that my legacy will positively inspire others to trust in themselves and their abilities to go for their dreams. Whatever that may mean to someone. I want others to be able to look at me & my business endeavors and say “I can do that too”. Especially those that lead creative lives and hobbies. I would only hope we have a world full of beautiful, bright and creative people doing what they love and doing it loudly!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Misha & I own and operate a home bakery in Homestead, Florida. I make funky, fun, colorful decorated cakes and desserts.

To be honest, I’ve always had an interest in the culinary and the pastry + baking world from young. I’ve always cooked but I started off in the baking world much like others in this industry may start off. As a hobby – baking for friends, family, coworkers.

This hobby turned into a quick thought of “maybe I can profit”. I started to sell at events here and there, quit a whole lot in between, worked at family owned bakeries, quit some more. Then it became a hobby once again. And through that hobby, I got the trust from a fellow coworker to do a real deal decorated cake and set of cupcakes. My first commission!

After that first commission, more commissions came in through word of mouth and social media. Business slowly started climbing up and up. I was able to enter this industry with my own business full time after a few months of consistent commissions and here we are now, two years later.

This entire journey has been a process as I’m sure it is for any business. Mentally, physically, emotionally. While I’m still learning and balancing life with, my business has taught me a whole lot along the way – how to be a business woman, to instill boundaries, to freely create, to be a better human being just to name a few things off the top of my head. It has taught me a lot of discipline as well. I am truly always looking forward to the challenges with patience & also learning with ease.

Overall, I am proud of where my business is at so far. I treat it as a marathon, not a race. I don’t see competition. I don’t see myself trying to make everything perfect. Allowing myself to just create without judgement. Allowing myself to learn without judgment. I think if I thought otherwise, everything would be a lot more stressful. I’ve learned to trust the process, forgive the trial and error and to most importantly have fun with everything I’m learning and doing.

I am also very proud of seeing my progression not only with the technical parts of caking and baking but how I’ve come into my own style overtime. One thing I want to remind others when they see my work is that I’m still a human and one that is exploring their creative side. I would hope that it can inspire others to do the same in whatever platform or realm. Just good ol’ honest creativity. It opens all kinds of doors.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I feel for any business owner in general, you must be resilient because there is a lot sacrifice and risk.

Personally, I would say what has illustrated my resilience is working way longer hours than a regular 9-5, finances & running the entire operation in a small apartment.

I have swapped a 9-5 job to work constantly. While I’m grateful to be doing my own work, this can take a toll mentally and physically. When I even take a day off, I’m thinking about the next move I should make. This is where boundaries are important and have to remind myself of that.

Financially, it is always fluctuating. So you can imagine how that may go for bills sometimes.

Space-wise, I have limited kitchen counter-space and storage. More than half of my room is my supplies. I even have a whole fridge in my room. In a baking business, when custom cake is your primary selling item, there is a lot of equipment you must always have on hand… and it is bulky.

Overall, I do look forward to the day I have a big space so I can freely move, store and expand so I am able to offer more. But, I have made this work for now. In due time!

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I think what helped build my reputation within this market is that I always lead with honesty, transparency and kindness.

Also, communication and punctuality.

Because of that, customers will always feel that the entire experience from the beginning of the ordering process to the end is worth their trust, time and money. Through that, it is a natural and positive domino effect by word of mouth.

Another factor is social media! Utilizing social media has played a huge role. Others can see the work being done. And I can happily say that they accept the creativity I show to the point that they hit that order button.

Contact Info:

• Website: Linktree – https://linktr.ee/mishabakesit
• Instagram: @mishabakesit

Image Credits
Photo of myself – Matt – @nappynappz13