Today we’d like to introduce you to Alicia Reedy.
Alicia, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
When I was a child, I naturally gravitated towards creating confections in the kitchen. From cakes to cookies, I always enjoyed baking with my grandmothers in their respective kitchens. My love for creating desserts for everyone to enjoy stayed with me through all of my days and especially my early adulthood. What originally started off as my stress reliever turned out to be something more between 2013 and 2015, and I ended up developing a strong desire to create a cookie/pastry business. The website I initially created didn’t work out the way I anticipated because I was a bit impatient and because of some technical difficulties, and the name of the business itself didn’t feel right. I didn’t look at it through a lens of defeat. I took it as a sign from God: “Not yet, Alicia.” I experienced life a bit more, gave birth to my beautiful daughter in May of 2018, and woke up inspired in early September 2018. I knew it was time to create this labor of love I had been sitting on. I gathered all of my recipes, and received assistance from my sisters for pricing and promotion. And on September 16th, 2018 (the same day my daughter turned four months old), The MonAlicia Bakes was born. The rest is history that continues to be written.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
To say it’s been a smooth road is far from the reality of it all. When you first start a business, it’s very easy to charge less than what you’re worth. You’re still figuring things out one step at a time. It wasn’t until November of 2018 that I quickly realized, “Okay, I’m barely getting profit. I have to take things up a notch.” The initial feedback wasn’t received well for the most part and it was followed with, “I can make this at home. This is expensive.” Those individuals that separated themselves from what I brought to the table made the greatest amount of room for those that have held me down over the last four years.
When my business went viral in 2020, I received just about 1000 orders between June and December of that year. I wasn’t extended much patience or grace during that time. I received a lot of harmful messages and threats. I would get phone calls and texts at all hours of the day and night. I was put in positions where I had to publicly talk about abusive situations I was in with hopes that that would be enough for people to take it easy on me… Some people were understanding, and some people felt it was better to say, “Okay, that sucks but imagine how I feel. I still haven’t gotten my cookies,” or “Oh, I don’t care but where is my order?”. It got to the point where I wouldn’t post content on The MonAlicia Bakes’ social media accounts because I was worried about getting a slew of angry messages in my comments, text messages, and email because it happened that frequently. As a result, I ended up experiencing a level of depression that made me feel like I couldn’t afford to have time for myself outside of my business. I seldom received empathy but the ones that did extend the following are still loyal customers of mine to this day. I will always be grateful for them.
More often than not, people see what The MonAlicia Bakes is and are very quick to say or think, “There’s no way cookies take this long to make.” In those moments, they see the business and the fact that they spent money on something and completely forget about the human side of it all. The MonAlicia Bakes is a small business that operates with small business power. Only 1-3 people work at a time, and those 1-3 people still need to honor themselves in order to provide the best product possible and to make The MonAlicia Bakes what it is today.
As you know, we’re big fans of The MonAlicia Bakes. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
My business is The MonAlicia Bakes. It’s a small family-operated, Black-owned business. I specialize in innovative cookies and whoopie pies. What sets me apart from others is my creativity. I don’t believe in boundaries or the impossible when it comes to my product because I know for a fact that I can bring whatever I envision to life. I’m very intentional with every flavor release because I put my entire heart into it, and knowing that people are able to experience this extension of the love I have in my heart means everything. I want the readers to know that my brand is founded on authenticity, honesty, love and transparency. The following pillars brought me to exactly where I am today. And every experience you have with The MonAlicia Bakes will always speak true to that. Your happiness is the ultimate reward.
I’m most proud of speaking the life I live into existence. In June 2015, I declared that I would be a household name and being able to live every day of my life knowing that my words hold that much power keeps me going through the easy and hard times. There isn’t anything that I’ve created that I don’t stand behind, and I will never commit to anything that doesn’t align with who I am as well as my brand.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
Any dream that’s on your heart is worth pursuing. Any idea you have is worth nurturing. When you believe in yourself and release control, knowing that the path you walk has been perfectly crafted just for you, all that’s for you will find you. The opinions others have of you and the distractions you experience along the way do not definite you. Any mishap does not mean you are a failure, and there is no shame in taking the time to reset, regroup and start over. It’s easy to worry about what we do or don’t have but all of that becomes noise when you choose to see the bigger picture.
One of the keys to entrepreneurship and our personal journeys is to never be afraid to take a bet on yourself. Choosing yourself day after day will always be the greatest reward. Highs and lows are to be expected but at the end of it all, no one’s got you like you. In addition to the higher power you believe in, the level of faith you have in yourself during your brightest hours and your darkest is what will always carry you through.
Contact Info:
- Website: themonaliciabakes.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/themonaliciabakes
- Facebook: Facebook.com/themonaliciabakes
- Twitter: twitter.com/monaliciabakes
