Blog

Each month in our Cake Crumbs blog we have been sharing a little glimpse into our talented customers business and creative lives. It’s been a wonderful and insightful process, bringing us all here at Edible Image Supplies great joy to be able learn about these lovely, passionate and creative people. We thought as a little end of year wrap up it would be nice to reflect over some of these blogs.

Through interviewing our customers for our blog we’ve learnt they have each have ended up in the world of “sweet treats” via different paths and influences. Some loved cakes from a young age or were inspired by others. Some found their passion and talent for it later in life. Others have trained themselves in edible image and themed party accessory printing after seeing an opportunity for a low startup cost business in an ever-growing market. Despite how they began their business, they all share a common love and passion for their work and place great value on the flexibility that running their own business has afforded them with regard to their family needs. Each has also discovered that they not only can make wonderful things, they are also pretty handy at running a business.

On how their cake/sweets/business journey began and what it meant to them:

“It was my last child's first birthday in 2015 that started it all. Armed with a small cake tool box that my husband bought me as a gift, I created a Number 1 shaped cake complete with fondant and a cute looking 2D smiley giraffe face. It wasn't a great piece of art by any stretch of anybody’s imagination. All I can say is that something clicked in me, something shifted and a true passion was born. A creative outlet that had been simmering in the background for over 25 years.

Not only have I been able to stay at home for my children; a goal since my triplets were born in 2000, but I have proven to myself that I can operate a business.”
- Leanne Jones, Sweet Lucy

“It’s something that had never crossed my mind, nor did I ever think that baking would be a hobby that I would enjoy. I have a degree in science and when I graduated, my career goal was to work for a reputable company and work my way up from there. It wasn’t until about 8 years ago when I attended my friends baby shower that I noticed how gorgeous her dessert table set up was and then these little cute round detailed cake balls on a stick had caught my eye. From then I had discovered the world of Cake Pops and from that day forward it meant endless YouTube videos, pinterst searches etc.

Starting my own business meant a lot for me. When I fell pregnant with my first child, I knew that my work life would get in the way of being a mum, so I wanted to do something which is still for me but at the same time be flexible and always there for my children.”
- Shrine Somsom, Sugar Sweet Randomz

"Smashcake came to life in 2009 when a friend gifted me with a chocolate box filled with lollies. I loved this idea so much and thought that it would be super cool to design smash-able chocolate piñatas that actually looked like real cakes!

Starting my own business has given me the flexibility to work around my children and has also enabled me to go to “work” every day and do something that I love and I’m incredibly passionate about. These things are priceless.”
- Kylene Lovat, Smashcake

“I initially started my business (9 years ago) doing invitations and personalised party stationery. I stumbled into the edible printing when my cousin who is a professional Cake Decorator, convinced me to buy a printer and start doing them. She had been doing them a little in her shop but was getting too busy and taking time away from her cake making, and she thought it would be a good idea as they seemed to be getting very popular. I can't believe I hesitated at first - the edible printing side of my business has well and truly taken over from the invite side - to the point I have two assistants who help on different days - mainly with the packing of orders!

Running my own business means I haven't ever had to worry about daycare, I am also able to make it to school assemblies and sport training.”
- Donna Zagari, Deezee Designs

“Running my own cake business has been an absolute gift - I am an ‘at home mum’ so most of the time I have been able to work it around the demands of family life and only take on the work that I want to. Bakers hours - while often exhausting - do tend to lend themselves to having most of the work done by the time the kids and husband get out of bed. Best of all, it is a huge creative outlet for me and gives me a great sense of satisfaction.”
- Gabby Elliott, Lets Have CupCakes

“I’ve loved baking ever since I was a little girl, both of my grandmothers and my mother played a huge role in igniting my passion. I enrolled to do my first cake decorating class – a short 5 week “basic buttercream” course at my local cake decorating centre, that was about 3 years ago.

For me, I still pinch myself that I get to do something that truly ignites my soul whilst getting paid for the privilege! Stuff dreams are made of.”
- Kristine D’Ambros, Mummy Bakes Cakes

“I never intended to be a cake maker. I was reluctant, but my husband just went ahead and put me on Facebook and it took off from there. I’ve always been artistic and enjoy creating things.”
- Kyla Daniels, Cakes By Kyla

“Starting my own (edible image) business was a learning curve for me, at the beginning it was a challenge to balance work, life and finances but after the first 2 months things got easier and I was able to pay off my initial business outlay and maintain a positive income. The juggle was worth it as I was able to build it up enough to pay for itself but also to add income to our household and remain a stay at home mum to three children.”
- Janifer Hutchinson, Janifers Edible Cake Toppers.

We’re also going to be a bit cheeky and highlight the reasons why our customers choose to use edible images……we are in the business of selling edible ink printer systems after all - so, indulge us please.

On why our customers love using edible images:

“We love that we can create an extra personal touch by providing our customers with the opportunity to use family photos and images/text etc. on our baked goodies! People are always looking for something unique when celebrating special occasions & what better way to do that than being able to put your face on a cookie or cupcake :)

It is also a great way to advertise your business for promotion by being able to put high quality images/logos onto something your customers can take home and eat.”
- Jaime & Renee, The Little Treat Boutique

“On cakes they are a massive time saver! Time is money and you can use them to create something that would take far longer by hand. With cookies it lets you brand an edible product and there is a demand for branded items.”
- Jade Bockel, Melbourne Cookie Co.

“Edible images provide many benefits, including creating very personalised cakes, for example, the inclusion of edible images of photos of loved ones, as well as logos for corporate clients. The technology allows us to quickly turnaround designs for our clients.”
- Luke Wallace, Black Velvet Sydney.

“So many advantages. To begin, they allow me to try new designs and if I don't like it, I can try again and not ruin the cake. When I started out, I tried so many techniques that I didn't like and the cakes would be thrown in the trash. At that point, it can seriously affect your confidence as a newbie to the cake decorating world but the edible images allow you to find your own unique style.

It also saves me a lot of time! As a cake decorator your time is precious, and you want to be efficient as you can. To be able to create stunning cakes in a fraction of the time is priceless.”
- Cheryl Robinson, Bumbleberry Bakes (formerly Cake Designs By Cheryl Robinson).

“I love using edible images, it can save so much time and looks very modern. I would rather use images than make fondant characters.”
- Joanna McNeill, Lick The Spoon.

There you have it! So many inspirational snippets from our talented customers. One thing’s for sure, our desire as consumers (in all sense of the word) for custom cakes, cookies and sweets has grown dramatically in popularity in recent years and continues to do so. Unique, creative, bespoke, branded, custom sweet treats are well and truly here to stay.