We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Rachel Barrett. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Rachel below.

Rachel, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?

When I started baking cakes it was just for friends and I did not plan to launch a small business. The cakes were delicious, and beautiful, and multiple friends independently called me Cake Queen, as a term of endearment. I immediately knew I was creating something meaningful and that was what I wanted to name my new business.

Rachel, 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 started Cake Queen LA in early 2022, offering custom organic cakes. This business was born out of a desire to create beautiful, delicious and healthy baked goods, something I had been interested in for a long time. I lived in New York City and worked for fifteen years as a photographer, with a focus on food photography. Over time I became increasingly interested in working in a food space, first attending culinary school then launching a food zine and pop-up dining events. When I moved my family to Los Angeles in 2015 I took time off from my professional career to focus on raising my kids and building a home. All along the way I was creating, from the design of our house to the meals I made nightly. Now I get to create the most visually exciting and interesting creations, taking inspiration from the 50s cookbooks I loved growing up, as well as contemporary bakers who I admire. I am so proud of the goods I create. Everything is made fresh by me! I use almost exclusively organic ingredients, local produce as much as possible, and I know the love I put into each order is felt and tasted because my customers keep coming back.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

My clients were initially from a meaningful Facebook group of moms, who I can really credit with helping me get Cake Queen LA up and running. They continue to be my most frequent returning customers. Word of mouth brings in almost half of all my new customers, but it has definitely been through Instagram that my new clientele has grown the most.

How did you build your audience on social media?

I actually try not to invest too much time into creating content and social media strategy, because that ultimately takes away from my time baking and decorating. I am fully booked up every month, often over booked in fact, with a still relatively small following. So my advice to those starting to build a social media presence, is showcase the work you are creating really effectively (i.e. beautiful photographs) but try to keep your focus on doing the work that is important to you.

Contact Info:

• Website: cakequeenla.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/cakequeenla

Image Credits
Photography by Rachel Barrett