We recently connected with Susana Rea and have shared our conversation below.

Susana, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

I started Julianna’s Dessert Bar in June 2020. Surprisingly, not because of the pandemic but because of my two kids. My son was born in April 2020 and my oldest daughter, Julianna, received hip surgery in June 2020. I had a newborn and a child in cast from her hip to ankles. So, that meant I had a lot of Dr. Appointments! I went down to working part time in my 9-5 and that meant my income will also go down. I have always loved baking. I even went to college for Culinary Arts. One day after my daughter’s appointment I decided to post on my personal social media that I will have some treats available for the weekend if anyone’s interested in purchasing. To my surprise, I sold out of everything I had made within a few minutes and I had request to make more for future dates. From there I would post what I was making and slowly opened dedicated page for just my baked goods.

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 always loved baking. after high school I went to our community college for Hospitality Management program. Loved everything about it. Throughout the years I have always baked for family. So, it was an easy decision for me to start baking as a side hustle. What I love the most is that I have been able to create a platform where I am able to be creative and I have people supporting me. I love receiving messages saying “they can’t wait what flavors are next” and I especially love when they give me flavor combos!

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

It has never been easy. From starting something during the pandemic to having a newborn to my daughter with her surgery, to now having both of my kids in the Autism Spectrum. It has always been challenging but that is what keeps me going. It is the thrive to continue creating new products. It is the reason why I am doing everything possible to make this side hustle turn to something bigger.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

The biggest lesson I have learned is that you need to have passion. You have to enjoy what you are doing and you have to believe in yourself! I was terrified to start offering a product that is not normally seen as vegan. But that was the best decision I have made. People can tell when you are not being genuine and your true self. I was having a conversation with someone that has had their company for 10+ yrs about the products that I was doing and the first thing he asked me was “Is that your passion? Does that make you want to get out of bed and do something different in your field?” The answer was simple, no. So, thats when I changed the way I view things in my business.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @Juliannasdessrts