Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Varanya Sanseeha. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Varanya, 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?

It was ultimately the birth of our son that inspired our family to pursue our own business. Naturally we had to give our business a proper name. “Theo’s mini donuts” is named after our permanent taste tester and son Theodore!

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

My name is Varanya. I grew up working with my family in the restaurant business and learned at a young age how a business operates. At the age of 18 I left my home in San Antonio and moved to Chicago where I continued my education and worked part time at a local coffee shop in order to pay my bills. My life in Chicago introduced me to an assortment of amazing and diverse foods. My position in the coffee shop included barista as well as lead baker.

We offered pastries, sandwiches but it was the donuts that would attract our customers the most. I began callaborating with my manager about new flavors and developed a passion for baking and the art of marketing. It wasn’t long before I worked my way up and eventually left the coffee shop scene to pursue my own path. I was 24, and I just gave birth to my son Theodore. It was at this time that my fiancé Allen and I began brainstorming about our future and the future of our son during a time when the world was shifting economically.

Together with my love and creativity for baking and Allen’s passion for health & wellness we began experimenting with different donut options that would appeal to the “health conscious” community. Over time we perfected our craft and our famous gluten free mini donuts were born! we didn’t stop there though.

It wasn’t long after, that we would introduce a vegan and Keto option. We wanted to create a delicious mini donut that everyone could enjoy! Our philosophy is simple – “Eat well & tastefully.” It was ultimately the birth of our son that inspired our family to pursue our own business. Naturally we had to give our business a proper name. “Theo’s mini donuts” is named after our permanent taste tester and son Theodore!

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

I remember that day, I was hanging out at my apartment with my new born son and my fiancé, thinking how much fun it would be to bake mini donuts for my neighbors and our community. I was hoping to get 10 orders a week. Definitely doable with a baby at home, I thought. So I hit the button to shared in a few FB groups. A few hours later, I had 25 orders for that week.

When we moved down south (Georgetown, Texas) we continued to grow the business. I experimented with different ingredients to appeal to different tastes. I introduced the mini donuts at the local Farmers market and a popular coffee shop in the community.

From just the addition of word of mouth in this close knit community, I was able to expand and get to know other business owners, giving us opportunities to collaborate.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Community markets, word of mouth, and being in consistent locations. Having a presence at our local coffee shop, where clients know I will be, helps with preorders and regular customers.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.theosminidonuts.com
• Instagram: @theosminidonuts
• Facebook: THEO’s mini donuts

Image Credits
@theosminidonuts