CupCakeMaMa216

My Story

 

My name is Tiara Leftwich. I am a mom of 2, and I am from Cleveland. A little over a year ago I was planning a birthday party for my son. I had put every penny that I had into his party. I wanted him to have a specialty cake. You know like the ones that you see on cake boss. I called around to several bakers and was 100% blown away by the prices. I knew that I could not afford to pay that much money. So, I downloaded YouTube, I surfed the internet, went to my local craft store. 18 (no exaggeration) hours, a sore back, and a kitchen that looked like a tornado hit it later, I produced what I thought at the time was a masterpiece. In hindsight I know realize that it was a complete failure. I was so proud of it. I took pictures of it, and posted it to my social media. I sent the pictures to all of my family and friends. They were so shocked that I had created this cake. I have never been a good cook, and baking had never crossed my mind. It appeared that I had stumbled into my niche by accident.

Days later people began contacting me to place orders for cakes. I was so confused. I did not expect my son’s birthday cake to turn into a full blown business. I was so nervous to accept orders. Sure I made a cake for my son that was admired by family and friends, but was I ready for complete strangers that may not be so forgiving if I messed up? Here I am in a small 1 bedroom apartment with no counter rolling fondant on a folding table with a mixer from Walmart, and some pans from the thrift store. But, I decided to accept the orders and challenge myself. I came up with a name for my business, I dedicated most of my free time to research. Watching videos, reading books, and practicing. 

Fast forward a year and a half later, here I am. I started an Instagram page (@cupcakemama216), I made some business cards, and I began to promote myself. I advertised my cakes on IG, Facebook and flyers. My biggest advertisement was word of mouth. I have made over 200 cakes and counting. I am eager to take on new challenges and opportunities.