So I wanted to call this episode between our cupcake as Maybe aware cupcakes are a thing. May they are delicious thing, but there also thing in the world of business, lifestyle, food, culture and so on. I was actually shocked when looking through the archives doing some research with this episode to notice that we haven't featured someone with a cupcake hustle. Until now we have done ice pops, we ve done custom cookies. We have done troll, cakes, someone bakes with the abusive comments of Facebook, trolls and then males to that person. That was a funny story along with many other confections, but here we are on day six hundred and fifty five of cider school and were exploring the world of cupcakes.

The first time crazy what we may be late to the party, but we're starting with a high standard, because there are cupcakes and there are next level cupcakes. The ones I'm going to tell you about. Today are some next level cupcakes and in fact they can cost twenty dollars each no kidding the twenty dollars cupcake, you might be thinking. What has the world come to you, but wait pigs are a work of art. They are designed and baked with a custom image of yourself, perhaps a selfie of yourself, which, as you know, a picture of yourself, or the image of a celebrity or a brand. Not that's not interesting enough on its own between our cupcake, the people are actually paying for the couple that runs. This project met on tender, they swiped right to a selfie, cupcake success and their tagline is we're not New York's typical cupcake bakery indeed there? Not they blinded client such as Nike, Adidas and many celebrities, it is a profitable business, as you might just when the price point, and there still doing it part time with a lot of room for growth

So this was a sweet one in a fun. One here is a thank you to our sponsor will appreciate them. They allow to show to be free to you and I'll. Tell you about the twenty dollar cupcake and a tender match couple that adds butter and love silence was come in all shapes and sizes, and now, thanks to Caroline Benny Lena become indifferent, cupcake flavors too, Carolina Manhattan, based active where designer love the sense of unbridled potential. With passion and design colors patterns, shapes and text all have their own, meaning just waiting to be harnessed for a purpose. He started, making her own costumes at the age of twelve rapacious, separate into a bachelor degree in textiles and then a career the technical designer working for brands like under armor, saw cycle and cannot call her work. Why and still is, fulfilling the Carolina create another out

for her creativity, where she could have even more fun with color and texture, something sweeter than our day to day life. She eventually found it thanks to a fateful tender swipe at master with her now boyfriend Benny after a few dates and long walks through Well park. He told Carolina about his vision to create a brand that combined food art fashion and pop culture into one sweet package. Carolina Then started with a selfie cupcake, where they use icing some clever printing techniques to bake cupcakes with faces of celebrities on them not only to those cupcakes taste good, but they looked great on their instagram feats posting images. There was free, easy and most important of all their target. Audience spent a lot of time on it too. They called it eat good. I took them for months have making soppy cupcakes along with a moment of great timing before they saw the more savory side of success, since they were putting celebrity faces on their cupcakes, it made sense to try to get one of their products spot it in the hands of those celebrities.

This turned out to be easier said than done since apparently you're not supposed to just male random food to random strangers, but Lena had heard that care Adela being a model. An actress was at a nearby Sephora. She quickly iced up her nearest cupcake with curious image in Benny, ran uptown, dodging captain pedestrians to try to get it to one celebrity selfie amidst a massive paparazzi later and eat good was a viral success. Three years later, you have grown there side us into one of New York City, most unique bakeries with features by vogue. The new Yorker and more their clients include Nike, Adidas and Madison Square Garden, but let's slow down. How did one tinder match under match a few months have after work, side, hustling and hundreds of cupcakes become a business with almost thirteen thousand Instagram followers, even making a batch of cupcakes for beyond saves birthday. While it took those three years and industrial strength, kitchen

and lots of hard work and determination? Carolina many started, but just two to three orders per week there now receiving three to four orders a day cupcakes either bread and butter also trusting and they aren't sheep. They cost customers anywhere between sick. Dollars for a dozen to a hundred eighty dollars. It doesn't for their specialty three dimensional designs and, if you're buying fewer than a dozen of especially ones, they do indeed cost twenty dollars each there currently song about three hundred high and cupcakes a week with cookies, a new product coming in hot as their second best seller. Moving around a hundred to two hundred a week, every sail is delivered to the New York City area from the commercial kitchen. They rent the delivery radius as a challenge, because it means, even though New York City is big. They can only expand so much with their current model. There challenge. Is this being a two person side I saw when both people have ninety five jobs, because the product, so design oriented curling applied a design principle to pricing as well. She said when we were thinking about how much to charge we about the amount of time we spent designing them and the daily rates of artists we hand sculptor,

thing, without any so definite think of ourselves as creating art, which is what we always set out to do. It helps customers country than looking for more than just an average cupcake, which is also they can maintain that pricing structure eat good, took about five thousand dollars to get started, recover their website, logo, design book baking materials, including flower, sugar, cupcake, liners and sugar sheet printers and also includes daily Rennell cost for a commercial kitchen which runs about three dollars a day. They'll used that kitchen on a permanent basis, which is great in some ways, because they only pay on as they back, but they also don't get a better rate, the more they ran it. It took Carolina Benny about six months to recoup their initial costs and another few months to reach start rolling in the sugar. Above all, she says: wouldn't have had any of their success if they didn't understand or competition and what else was available on the market. Cupcakes aren't unique, especially these days but selfies sneakers, an art designs on cupcakes are and that's what their customers loved them for in today's visual culture. Food isn't just for eating and art, isn't just for museums, Carolina

combine the best of both for their super sweet side, us all and now the skies the limit for their next move? Their dipping into hard candy moon, cakes and whatever else Rima Carolina knows there. Next product probably won't be traditional, but it will look amazing and photos So the next logical step when a project reaches this point, is they had to make some decisions there in a really good place? They can grow this if they want to, it seems like they do, but there also still work in their full time. Job right now. They dont ship, their cupcakes beyond the New York City area. So one question is: are they figure out how to do that or not, and I can see pros and cons arguments both ways for that. I was just going to expand the number of customers they can serve, but then it's also not a small thing to figure out how to ship cupcakes in a way in which they're still going to arrive, fresh and king amazing, what which is a key part of the value they provide US artists as cupcake designers, some guessing

now they're- probably not going to do that. But still, I wonder, like I looked at their website and on the web there's not much online ordering the online ordering is very limited. A lot of what you have to do is custom, which makes sense in terms of begging cupcakes, beyond saves birthday or a commission for Nike or something, but just in terms of showing the public like the general public who wants to buy a couple dozen cupcakes set for their friends party or something we shall come back to it moment. I do think there's a way that they can figure that out and make that process look at more streamlined. They could definitely a lot more orders so again, that's why they have to make some decisions because they may not want a lot more orders right now. You're just depends on what goals are, but personally I can't imagine how complicated the back and forth would be for each endeavours order, if you to thought a contact form and have a phone call and so on and so forth, like crazy. A good online ordering system can go a long way. Also in terms of the price point. This is a great gift. You know I was thinking about this nose like I'm, not gonna pay pay hours, a cup cupcake just for myself, but for a party or a social gathering for

right kind of event, I would consider spending a hundred dollars on five of them or two hundred dollars on a dozen or whatever it costs for friends, perhaps to celebrate somebody's birthday or a big accomplishment. So that's really what it's about its, not just that they are delicious cupcakes, like I'm sure they are delicious, but really the aesthetic the design. The presentation is really what goes a long way here. So, of course, you have to see these for yourself. Rina link up the institute and the website for these guys. We take a look at it on his shoulder its page and as always, inspiration is good, but inspiration with action is better, though show notes, are at sight of school dot com, slash, six, five, five as episode six hundred and fifty five. When you get a quick shot you, my friend Jill Slush injure, she has a new book coming in the spring, called the dumb things. Smart people do with their money jail is a certified financial minor in a long time commentator. Firstly, the S news I had the privilege of being on her show once and I was thrilled when I got in advance copy of this, but we can create a that book. Now again, it's called the dumb things. Smart people do with them.

Thanks so much for listening to come back tomorrow. Be sure you subscribe tell your friends, my name is preschool about. This is side us elsewhere.