Welcome to 2019? Wait, is it almost over yet? This is what I am calling our WHIRLWIND YEAR at the bakery!

This post was originally only supposed to be focused on our AWESOME new Team Cheeks (shout out to each & every one of you is in order and below), but Holy Smokes, the article just evolved.  Seriously, it probably doesn’t get any crazier than the changes we experienced in the first 7 months of this year!! I decided it wouldn’t be as meaningful without a little blip about the nutso realities that recently hit our small business all at once in 2019…so here you go:

  • I bought out my business partner Donna and saw her fly off to her new home in Florida (we miss her).
  • Some of our long-adored employees moved on to new careers in medicine, management, etc..
  • Our Chef Jeff was in a terrifying cake vehicle accident on the Interstate that messed up both his sanity & the minivan (FYI, the 4-tier wedding cake was fine, thanks to his careful driving!)
  • We battled endless & costly $ repairs on our walk-in freezer (thank you Brian Despres Refrigeration for being the only one of 4 companies to be honest & helpful!)
  • We received terrifying health diagnoses from various family members & friends.
  • Many industry peeps labeled 2019 the “Year of Wedding Death…” due to a slow season.
  • CA hit small businesses with higher taxes, fuel costs, and workers’ comp fees.

WHEW!!!!

I looked at Kayla and said, “what the heck else can go wrong?” About then my left shoulder and the A/C on the other bakery van blew out, resulting in a “How are we going to get through all of this?”

JUST BREATHE…

Suddenly things started to fall back into place after a few months of yoga & meditation (thank you Renee Gauthier!), wine with friends (best neighbors ever!!), and a few very effective Craigslist ads.

Our new status:

  • Van is fixed and back in action (thank you Chrome Collision), and Chef Jeff got through the nightmare like a champ!
  • Family members stabilizing – but keeping positive attitudes & Health Goals!
  • Freezer eventually died but we found a great replacement – thank you, Julie Darling, Joe, and my Cheeks Men for helping to deliver!
  • Wedding business is rockin’ & rolling – thank you to all of our incredible venues & industry peeps for sending us clients and to our previous clients for writing us 5* reviews!
  • My amazing husband Michael stepped in to help with wholesale deliveries and offset all the backlogged bank reconciliations, bless his awesome heart…!
  • Donna is happy in Florida and working for the US Post Office; we talk weekly, love my friend!
  • NEWLY HIRED TEAM MEMBERS have brought so much JOY & TALENT to our world, yay!

Honestly, I couldn’t have gotten through these past months without the support from our new mix of talent, skill, fun, and loveliness. Our Team Cheeks has been SHINING like never before!! This is a shout-out to our incredible team family:

  • Britt & Christina for creating a whole new sort of fantastic Decor Team
  • Malissa for jumping onto our Wedding Team
  • Michael for his INSANE help with financials and deliveries

Our amazing powerhouse core of:

  • Jeff – stepping up as the official Executive Chef
  • Kayla – handling even more of the endless Logistics
  • Lauren – tackling a sea of clients & keeping them happy
  • Noel – stepping up as our new Kitchen Manager
  • Julie – kicking butt on our delicious recipes
  • Heather Elise Photography – always taking fun team photos
  • Andy at INFIX for his continued help & guidance
Meet the Team

I couldn’t do this without you all, THANK YOU for bringing back my sanity and an incredible team at Sweet Cheeks!

Time to eat some cake,
– Elaine