July 22, 2020
By: Special to The Free Press
TAMPA, Fla. – Sweet, Safe, and Sanitized have always been words that describe The Cake Girl in Tampa, but their creativity has helped them shine during the past few months while business shatters. The Cake Girl is a certified minority and women-owned business in Carrollwood operated by a husband and wife team. Kristina Lavallee, AKA “The Cake Girl”, celebrated her first year since opening her first brick and mortar store this year during the pandemic.
“I never imagined we would experience so much during our first year, but it’s proved that our concept and business plan work”, said Kristina. The brick and mortar store opened in June 2019 and serves 60+ flavors of mini cupcakes, custom cakes for all occasions, and gourmet ice cream. From the moment you walk in the door, you know they are serious about their trade. Baking from scratch daily, there are always new flavors of mini cupcakes to choose from.
“Being fluid and continuously shifting processes and adapting to the new normal, is how we have been successful during this pandemic”, says Kirby Lavallee, Chief Success Coach at The Cake Girl.
“It hasn’t been easy, but every entrepreneur likes a good challenge.”
One shift in business for The Cake Girl is they now ship their products nationwide. With the addition of their brand new Crave’n Cups (hand layered cake, toppings, icing and sweetness packed into a jar) they have been able to reach customers in less economically affected areas of the nation.
“We have been trying to implement shipping into our business model for months, the pandemic gave us the push to be able to get the ball rolling” said Kristina.
The implementation of these Crave’n Cups has been such a hit… In addition to the sweet new products they launched, they have also continued to give back and serve others. Several times during the last few months, Kristina and Kirby have been seen at local charities, food pantries, and nursing homes to deliver sweetness to those who need it the most. “We call it random acts of sweetness”, says Kristina.
As there is no clear future of when this pandemic will be over, food service establishments all over the nation are adapting and learning to operate under these new standards. “Safety has always been a top priority for us, and we are always focused on being the cleanest food service establishment around” says Kirby.
You can check out The Cake Girl online at www.thecakegirl.com or at their store located at 13713 N Dale Mabry Hwy, Tampa, FL 33618.
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