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Meet Kala Vaughn of Belle Sweets Bakery in Goodyear

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Kala Vaughn.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Kala. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
My mother introduced me to cooking and baking as a child. We would do many things from boxed mixes or from scratch, but as I grew older, I wanted to challenge myself more and experiment in different ways. After becoming vegetarian and eventually vegan, I had to learn new ways to create my favorite desserts in a dietary friendly way. With trial and error, I eventually found the secret to making delicious sweets and was winning over family and friends with each taste.

I never had serious career aspirations of starting a bakery business, but knew it would be a great side business to start in the future; I didn’t realize the future would come sooner than I imagined. In 2017, I was a recent college graduate on a vigorous job search, and nothing was a sure bet. I slowly began to write a bakery business plan as a “Plan B” approach. October 14th, 2017 Belle Sweets Bakery was born. It wasn’t a plan born out of desperation but of passion, innovation, and using my skills to generate income.

The meaning behind the name of the bakery pays homage to my mother, maiden name Bell, who introduced me to baking, with my daughter sharing the same middle name.

I’ve been in business for almost 2 1/2 years, and I will never say it’s easy. As a single mother and business owner, it can be difficult juggling those two important roles, and revamping creativity in my work has been the saving grace for my business.

Great, 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?
It has definitely not been a smooth road, but that is expected when becoming an entrepreneur. Something I have struggled with is confidence in my craft. As a mother of a toddler, life can get hectic and making time to practice different skills can be put on the back burner. But I gain inspiration from a community of self taught bakers and cake artists on Instagram, that push me to chart out time, make a plan and get things done.

Please tell us about Belle Sweets Bakery.
I own a certified-home bakery called Belle Sweets Bakery. It is a southern-inspired bakery specializing in vegan desserts. I’m most proud of my ability to win over non-vegans with my desserts, and that is one of the goals of my company. I believe what sets me apart from others is being one of the only vegan bakeries in Phoenix dedicated to offering southern favorites.

I love to recreate classic southern dessert recipes, for example, taking a classic southern pie and recreating it into a cookie or a cake.

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
This is a difficult question because it’s hard to pick one favorite childhood memory. One of my favorite memories from childhood is when my family and I lived in Maryland. We would trek to Washington D.C almost every Sunday afternoon and visit the museums. We lived there for a year or two, and we visited those museums in D.C with eager anticipation like it was our first time, each time.

Pricing:

  • My dessert prices range from $15 – $34

Contact Info:

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