When is the best time to start a business? According to Pennie Ahuera the best time is after you have been envisioning it for three years and it’s time to get a job or fulfill your vision. The mother of three dipped her toe in the marketplace at the Grandin Community Market during the summer of 2009.
After selling out her cupcakes during a two month period, she opened her first storefront location in Grandin Village in October. She has just moved “Viva La Cupcake” to her new location on the corner of Memorial and Grandin. The move enables her to bake on premises and provide adorable seating in her “industro-chic” environment.
She is quick to credit friends and neighbors with her success and has been profitable and stayed inside her budget from the beginning, no mean feat in these economic times.
There is much to be said for combining your passion with your vision. It is clear that her first passion is her family; her business decisions were based on sound financial principles combined with a need to be there for her children. Her current location allows her to keep an eye on her youngest boy while he is playing in a park, and allows a “homework spot” and a place for her children to assist her when necessary.
In a few short months she has gone from baking until 11 p.m. and icing at six in the morning, to a more manageable eight hour day that includes baking in her dream oven while attending to customers.
Along the way she has nourished her commitment to community. Olivia at Rockfish restaurant sold Ahuera her first refrigerated case which she paid off in three months time. She is quick to mention other business owners in the area and is developing a “cake and ice cream” concept with Pop’s around the corner. She will be baking a cupcake with a “hole” that will be the perfect fit for the Homestead Creamery delights that Pop’s offers. Star City Coffee is developing a special blend for her that will complement her signature cupcake, a chocolate lover’s smorgasbord of white chocolate center, milk chocolate frosting and fudge drizzle. A client was told that if her husband loves chocolate, the “S’mores” concoction “hits a guy’s heart like you wouldn’t believe.”
During one business day, in just a short amount of time: a client placed an order for a birthday party (buy a dozen, get charged for nine), a customer came in looking for an alternative to a dinner as a reward for some high achieving students, and a delighted woman went out the door munching her way up the street.
“Viva” also has a cupcake bar at the sunny window where children can perch on a handmade bench and enjoy their favorite cupcake after school. It’s easy to see where allowances are going these days.
Ahuero is a lovely combination of business acumen, family matriarch and community supporter. She has chosen a sweet and luscious way to provide for her family as she supports her local community and develops her passion for baking. She considers herself fortunate to have her very supportive husband at her side, and happy customers are reaping the benefits of their efforts.
By Christine Slade [email protected]
Cup cakes are dry and overpriced. 7-11 has better cup cakes on the shelves wrapped in plastic.