Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Shantel Vassell . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Shantel, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?
The name was derived from my first name, which is Shantel. Telly has been my nickname since I was little girl. My family members often tease me about my childhood. They say I used to talk a lot and tell everything . I could not keep a secret. Later years, I attained different variations of Telly, (Tells, Tellz). When I began brainstorming names, I thought of my favorite dessert which is a Poundcake. I use my Great Aunt Annie Bell’s recipe. Every time I bake and taste this, it brings a since of nostalgia. Immediately I asked myself why not put Tells and Cake together and I came up with Cake Tells.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
Hello my name is Shantel Barber Vassell. I am a woman who wears many hats. I am a Daughter, Sister, Wife, Mother of two wonderful boys, Full-Time Registered Nurse & self-taught baker (Owner of Cake Tells). I am a Durham, NC Native.
As a child I had the honor to visit my great aunts often, who allowed me to help in the kitchen. I realized that this was my happy place. Food makes others happy, and I enjoy baking. Baking is a way for me to express myself. It allows me to show love and gratitude to others. I recently decided to share my passion for baking with others and started my business, Cake Tells. Baking made with love and from scratch cakes and sweet treats.
Products that I offer are Cupcakes, Cakes, and Sweet Treats.
Some of the customer favorites are the Luscious Lemon, Very Vanilla, Scrumptious Strawberry cupcakes.
Customers also love the Slamming Sweet Potato, Sinful Chocolate, Mouthwatering Pound Cake.
I also offer what I refer to as Sweet Treats: Chocolate Covered Oreos, Pretzel Rods, Chocolate Covered Rice Krispy Treats, Cake Pops & Cakesicles.
What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?
The best source of new clients for me would have to be them personally having the experience at an event. Tasting the products themselves or witness the images, quality and feedback from others.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
I am still working on expanding my brand. I use all social media platforms Instagram, Facebook and Tik Tok to post images, reels and other content from my baked goods.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/cake_tells?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/caketells?mibextid=LQQJ4d
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@cake_tells?_t=8bDpIK5Mqwl&_r=1