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

Alright, Victoria thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. One of the toughest things about progressing in your creative career is that there are almost always unexpected problems that come up – problems that you often can’t read about in advance, can’t prepare for, etc. Have you had such and experience and if so, can you tell us the story of one of those unexpected problems you’ve encountered?

I’ve got the perfect story for you! In my first year of starting Honeycomb Pastries, I was taking any and all orders and requests that I could accommodate. I just wanted to get my name out! An order came in for a family friend, so I felt I couldn’t turn it down. They needed a gluten free, dairy free, vegan cake. I was very confident – I could do vegan cakes no problem, and planned to do a vegan cream cheese frosting to go along. I didn’t think the decoration process would take too long; I had candied lemons ready to go and had a design in mind, so I was taking the day fairly easy. Little did I know how unprepared I was…

As I’m stacking the cake and getting ready to put it in the freezer to set, the whole cake starts cracking like the Grand Canyon itself. I look at the clock and I see I have exactly thirty minutes until pickup. Full panic mode sets, I give myself a little mental breakdown moment and pull myself together to finish the job. Luckily, my friend Sarah was in the kitchen and she offered her help so I put her to work. I gave her a bowl of vegan white chocolate, and a quick ten second crash course on how to temper chocolate. After the chocolate is ready, I pour it over a sheet of acetate paper, wrap it around the cake and let it set before peeling the paper off. I do another layer to give it more character, and fill the top with berries and the lemon slices. A quick “Happy Birthday” on top and I hear the doorbell ring. I wipe my mascara tears away, put on a smile, and hand the cake off to the customer, desperately hoping I don’t get a call asking for a refund later.

After a couple days with no contact, I reached out and asked how the cake was. I add that it was my first vegan cake order, and would love any and all feedback, expecting to hear the worst. To my great surprise, they said they absolutely loved the cake, and would be calling for their next event as well! From what I could tell, they never found out about the disaster happening behind the scenes. Until now I suppose.

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

My name is Victoria Poull, and I fell in love with the pastry business at a young age, so thankfully I had no problem figuring out my career path. I started Honeycomb Pastries during a worldwide pandemic, and am now at the point where I’m hoping to bring on another creative to help with all my orders sometime in the near future. My specialty is custom cakes, but I do many other custom orders, as well as providing daily pastries at Mix Flagstaff.

Many customers will come to me with a vision in their head, and trust me to bring it to life. It’s a lot of pressure but always extremely rewarding hearing back from satisfied clients when it’s all said and done.

The thing I’m most proud of is how much I continue to grow with my decorating skills and creativity. I wish I had a picture to show you of my first few cakes, and believe me when I say they were terrifying. The great thing about creative work is that you will never do the same thing twice, and there’s always a new technique to try out and room for learning and refining your skills.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

I wanted to turn my passion into a career, moving away from using my creative ideas to sell under a name that wasn’t my own. I used to watch my Nonny work her magic on canvas, and wanted a way to use my artistry on pastries. I dabble in painting every now and then, but nowadays my medium is buttercream.

When the first thoughts of Honeycomb Pastries arose, I really needed to support myself after losing hours at my previous job. I decided that to find financial freedom, I would literally take matters into my own hands. Looking back, I think I was crazy to think that leaving my full time job and running to the unknown was my safest bet, but I’m optimistic that my business will grow enough to support my family and our future.

It all depends on how much people love my cakes, and looking at my lack of free time, I’d say I’m headed in a good direction. So thank you, dear customers, for allowing me to create a piece of art for you and for supporting my dreams.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

For the most part, customers understand that they are not just paying for a cake, they’re paying for artwork. But sometimes, customers question the price you’ve put on your product. How can one truly convey everything that goes into an order? Mixing varying shades of a color to give the cake depth. Hand painting edible gold to make a statement. Designing a cake from scratch when the client gives you creative freedom. Adding your own details to a vision they’ve come up with to make it your own. All the time it takes to meticulously add details to really bring a cake to life is what can truly make a difference.

Not only do I want to deliver a gorgeous cake, but I also want to make sure that it tastes just as amazing as it looks. Testing flavor profiles and making sure whatever combination the customer gives me compliments the cake as a whole. Making scratch compotes to give the truest and purest taste.

Along with the time spent creating the cake itself, there’s also time that is hard to put a label on. The extra time you weren’t counting on when a customer is praying you can sneak in one more order that they forgot to place. Other times a client decides they no longer want the cake and you’re out of the payment on an order already made. I had to learn the hard way to send invoices ahead of time. Those customers are few and far between, but I do think it would help future customers understand what exactly they are paying for.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.honeycombpastries.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/honeycombpastries/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/honeycombpastriesflg/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/honeycomb-pastries-flagstaff?osq=honeycomb+pastries

Image Credits
Deborah Allen Photography Hannah Rose Gray Photo Team