MADEINC
I spent the night at my job a LOT
of nights! I mean a LOT. It wasn’t
glamorous, but I was extremely
excited to deeply involved in
something I was passionate about. I
was living the dream and with all the
experience that I was gaining, I knew
it was something that no one could
take away from me. Working five
different jobs, for five very different
businesses allowed me to see those
companies successes and also their
failures. It was a great experience!
At what point did you realize
Penthouse Sweets was going to be
successful?
Two years ago when we opened
the doors to our storefront! Right
before then, Val Warner from Windy
City Live called me to personally
invite me into the show due to my
catering her children’s birthday
party some time before. She was so
blown away that she wanted me to
come into the show to tell others
about Penthouse Sweets, which
brings me where I am today.
I’ve had the opportunity to be apart
of the Grammys last year, attended
a private event at Oprah Winfrey’s
condo here in Chicago, make a
birthday cake for Chicago’s Chance
the Rapper, and others. To say that
2017 was a great year would be an
understatement.
journey. It’s not for the weak at
heart. It’s going to be a lot of late
nights and early mornings. A lot
of functions missed. A lot of times
when you want to hang out with
your friends and you can’t. Third,
remember the bigger picture. What
is your goal? What do you want
to get from this? Stay on track.
And lastly, don’t pay attention to
anyone around you in this field.
Do you, have a plan and stay in
your lane. Too many times I see
other pastry artists get distracted
because they see someone else
doing something. And then they try
to emulate it. Do you, period.
How’d you manage to self fund
your business?
I was adamant to not take out
loans, so I busted my butt to take
more orders and self-fund myself.
And it slowly happened. Without
any outside sources, including
my parents. It’s a feeling that
makes you very proud to have
accomplished something of that
size and not have to stress about
paying loans back if we ever got
slow with business.
What’s next for Penthouse Sweets?
You’ll have to wait and see for
yourself (laughs).
If there was a starter kit that you
could put together for aspirant
dessert shop owners,
what are three key things you
would share?
First, believe in yourself no matter
what including what your family
may tell you. Persevere. Secondly,
gather as much information as you
possibly can before starting this
made-magazine.com |
33