We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sonam Ghag a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Sonam, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?
I like to say that I am a Scientist by day and Baker by night! I received my Phd in Biochemistry and for my day job I work in R&D at a diagnostic company. So, when it came to naming my newly minted baking business it was only natural to tie in my passion for science. Plus, we all know that baking is truly a Science. So after a long brainstorming session with my sister-in-law we came up with a short list of names. The Bake Lab was the clear winner! I knew I wanted to incorporate the periodic table somehow and it just worked out that Ba and La are both symbols for elements on the periodic table. Thus, The Bake Lab was born!
Sonam, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I am a self-taught home baker who has always had a passion for baking! It all started with me experimenting around in the kitchen as a teen making muffins and cookies for my parents, siblings, and grandma. Slowly, this hobby evolved as I challenged myself to make layered cakes for my niece and nephew’s birthdays. I watched a lot of YouTube and Instagram videos from different cake makers and slowly taught myself how to create beautiful, edible works of art. There were plenty of failed cakes along the way, but every new cake was a learning experience, and I loved every minute of the journey.
Looking back, I am truly proud of what I have achieved as a woman in STEM and a home baker at the same time! People ask me often; how do I juggle my full time Scientist role and my baking business. Sometimes even I don’t know how I manage it all. But I think it’s my passion for both the Science and the bakes that keeps me going!
Do you have any stories of times when you almost missed payroll or any other near death experiences for your business?
As a baker, the worst thing that could happen is a client knocking on your door Saturday morning expecting their child’s 10th birthday cake for the party in the evening and you having nothing for them because you forgot all about their order! I often wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat asking myself, did I bake the right cake flavors, do I have all my supplies, did I forget any orders?!
So, you can imagine how I felt the day I had a client text me at 10pm, to confirm her 9am pick up the next morning. I had a minor (or major) heart attack. This was a Code Red in baker’s terms. Bless this client for texting me the night before. I was still able to drive over to QFC before it closed and grabbed all my ingredients. It was one of many late nights baking but it taught me to always double and triple check my order schedule!
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
One tough lesson I have learned through my small business is that as much as you may like, you cannot please everyone.
Every order I have, I always put my 110% passion, love and time into. My goal is to hand off that cake to a client and see their eyes light up by the design and for them truly love the taste of the cake. But I have learned that design and taste are two things that are very subjective to the viewer/taster.
It can be heartbreaking and discouraging to think that you have provided your best possible service and a customer has a slightly different interpretation of your work. But I have learned that you can’t let these moments bring you down or stop you. Instead, you have to learn from these critics and criticisms. The best one can do is try and learn from these moments, try and grow, and try to shake off any self-doubt that might have emerged.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://thebakelab.co/
- Instagram: _thebakelab_
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theBakeLab1/
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/sonamghag