2024, how a Shed and a Call from Environmental Health changed my business

Plus - After Eight Mint Brownie Recipe, in time for Christmas

2024 has been the year that a Shed hung on the side of my house, and a call from Environmental Health changed my Cake Business of 16 years.

At the start of the year, I had goals for my business.
I wanted to build my recipe newsletter.
I wanted to start a 'Cake Club'.
I wanted to help more bakers and businesses make and sell great cakes, with as little fuss as possible.

I first started with the newsletter. But as a by-product, I was accumulating lots of cakes in my freezer that my husband and I couldn't eat all by ourselves. I needed to sell them somehow. That's where the Cake Club idea came in. However, I couldn’t work out how to do it until…..

I saw a Bakery Cart on the Pink Crumbb instagram account and thought, "Let's do that, but make it British."

And The Cake Shed Honesty Box was born.

I bought a shed. We hung it on the side of the house, and I started putting all the cakes I made from recipe writing in it, plus a few extra favourites, and it was doing OK.

That was until I got a call from Environmental Health. Someone was trying to shut me down.

The Environmental Health officer told me someone had complained that I was selling cakes from the side of the road, and they were concerned about it.

But, not one to be beaten, and knowing I was doing nothing wrong - I’ve been in this business for long enough to know the rules! I ended up having a lovely chat with my EHO. She was confident that what I was doing was food safe and not dangerous in the least.

The Cake Shed was safe!!!

I posted about my Environmental Health encounter on Instagram, and the reel went viral. I now have a busy Instagram profile, I've had some wonderful messages from followers telling me how my Cake Shed experience, my baking, and my posts are helping them. And that makes it the most worthwhile of all.

I sell cake from The Cake Shed every week and love the space its given me within a friendly, thriving community.

AND, I have this wonderful newsletter, bringing easy bakes for home and business to you.

In the New Year I will be doing much more over on my Patreon account. I will be using it to expand on baking advise and the video side of things. I will be doing a monthly ‘Bake Along’, and regular Q and A sessions for members.

After the events of 2024, I am so excited to see what 2025 will bring.

If you want to have your own Cake Shed but aren’t sure where to start, check out my Start Your Own Cake Shed course.

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Coming up on the paid upgrade of this newsletter in January 2025:

Malted Milk Cake, Giant Cookie, Carrot Cake with UK Cream Cheese Frosting.

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After Eight Mint Brownie Recipe

Do you have a box of After eight Mints - before you start tucking in, save 9 and make this delicious, festive bake!