Today we’d like to introduce you to ‘Emma Cromedy.
Hi ‘Emma, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
Growing up, I was the sibling who always thought of creative ways to prepare my favorite foods. One Christmas, I received an Easy Bake oven and it was ON! I started making all kinds of cakes and I would decorate them using whatever was on hand in the kitchen. Fast forward to adulthood, I channeled my love for baking into a business. In the beginning, I mostly baked cakes for close friends and family members. I decided to take it up a notch and offered to bake my sister’s baby shower cake. It was beautiful, delicious and everyone loved it! As my baking desire grew, I decided to launch Charlotte’s FIRST mobile dessert truck! The SouthernCakeQueen was officially in business in 2008. We operated for more than 6 years, before my husband and I decided to move back to Charleston with our new bundle of joy. We then joined forces with Carolima’s Lowcountry Cuisine (Our full-service catering company I now co-own with my sister, Sameka Jenkins) and launched Carolima’s Dessert Boutique in 2020. We offer dessert catering and we have a mobile dessert boutique called the Sugah Cube. We currently offer made from scratch southern desserts that are made with LOVE. Our Charleston Chewies and specialty cakes are our most popular desserts!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Finding employees with baking knowledge has been an issue. We are definitely willing to teach but people don’t want to work or learn anymore. Some challenges we are facing during this pandemic has been supply and demand along with the influx in food cost. Some items can’t be found and the price of food is through the roof. We are currently looking for a larger kitchen however rent in Commercial Real Estate in Charleston is astronomical.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We have a mobile dessert boutique that allows us to roam the city selling our delicious homemade southern desserts.
I have participated in the Spring Cakes episode of Sugar Showdown on the Cooking Channel and the Juneteenth episode with Black Southern Belle on Food Network’s social media and online platforms.
Most of our recipes are from our Family’s treasure box! We love sharing our love of baking with our customers.
A few of our items are available to be shipped nationwide and can be found on our website at www.carolimas.com.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
Being an entrepreneur is all about risk! You can do anything with a plan, prayer, and the faith of a mustard seed. If you fail, at least you can say you tried. Nothing beats a try but a failure. As I grow older, I am not as open to taking risk as I was when I started back in 2008. My husband often has to convince me to do it!
I took my first major risk back in 2011 when I left my corporate America job to pursue my business full time. I prepared for the transition by setting a financial goal and obtaining it. It was scary but I knew I wasn’t going to be able to grow my business if I continued working full time. When I left, I hit the pavement running. I briefly returned to work in 2018 because I had exhausted all hope and needed to recharge. It gave me the boost I needed and I am back at it again. I have taken all my experiences combined with my sisters’ experience and we have created a strong plan for our brand.
Bringing on employees can also be risky. You are placing your baby in the hands of strangers. It is important that the culture you create exemplifies the expectations and the service you want to provide so your staff can execute. This is where good Standing Operating Procedures (SOP) are important. Creating a step-by-step road map for your employees and or predecessors is very important.
Contact Info:
- Email: carolimasdb@gmail.com
- Website: www.carolimas.com
- Instagram: carolimas_db
- Facebook: carolima’s dessert boutique
Image Credits
Aneris Photography
