Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Gilliam.
Lauren, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I always loved baking with my mom when I was young, but I didn’t become passionate about it until 2013. I remember being jobless and feeling like I didn’t possess passion or talent. I found myself in an emotional rut until randomly wanting coconut cake one day. So I flipped through my mom’s recipe book and baked a cake which was horribly dry, but the process and the taste still made me happy. After that, I tapped into making cupcakes and started creating my own recipes. My first recipe, which I thought was a complete failure, ended up being my number one selling flavor, the Sugar Cookie. Once I had recipes and flavors under my belt, I became extremely passionate about perfecting my craft, which led to more opportunities- birthday parties, weddings, corporate events and everything in between.
Has it been a smooth road?
Owning and maintaining a business is far from easy. In the beginning, it was difficult pricing my cakes and cupcakes. I often found myself undercharging clients thinking they wouldn’t choose my services because of the price. I also had a bad habit of comparing my services to those of other stores. I had to understand that my services stood apart. I create edible masterpieces which entail working long hours alone. Quality cake just isn’t cheap.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Sweat Dreams N Sunshine provides custom made cakes and cupcakes from scratch for all occasions. I came up with the name “SweEat Dreams” when I overheard my mom talking about dreaming of smelling sweets when I used to bake overnight. We started in 2013, providing cupcakes only, but we grew with our clientele and began selling cakes mid-2014. We specialize in making our clients happy. As I did some research within my field, I found that many people who ordered other custom cakes were happy with the look but dissatisfied with the taste and vice versa. Our goal for each one of our clients is for them to be happy and more than satisfied with their experience with SweEat Dreams, and I am proud to say we do just that. This is why our slogan is Be Happy & Eat Cake.
Customer service is the biggest factor that sets SweEat Dreams apart from the others. Many of my clients say that I am personal yet professional. I like to meet or physically talk to my clients to get a vibe of what they’re like. It helps me provide them the best experience. Flavor options, like Sugar Cookie, is also what sets us apart. Although we don’t showcase them, we still provide traditional flavors like vanilla, red velvet or almond upon request, but how many people can say their wedding cake flavor was Black & White, Pink Satin, or Margarita?
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Atlanta has been a great place for me to grow my business. I love how supportive the black community is here. It’s one of the reasons I moved to Atlanta. For anyone starting out, I would encourage them to constantly talk about their business every chance they could. I have found that people are trying to avoid large corporations and looking to support small businesses.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.sweeatdreamsnsunshine.com
- Phone: 7025132858
- Email: sweeatdreamsnsunshine@gmail.com
- Instagram: sweeatdreamsnsunshine
- Facebook: sweeatdreamsnsunshine
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