If you didn't make it to the Grilled Cheese Championship this past weekend, I encourage you to get out and attend next year!  The event is great for people of all ages and gets bigger and better every year.

Besides being a free event, with a great competition, food trucks, beverages, and vendors; the event is great for me.  Not only does it give me a chance to sell cupcakes, it gets my name out there to people who may not have heard of me, I get to meet and connect with people and businesses, and watch people get excited about my cupcakes.

This year I was lucky enough to have a large space to work with so I had plenty of room to display my cupcakes, display shirts, bags, and my menus, as well has having space for all my to-go packs. I brought some of my most popular flavors to the event: vanilla raspberry, chocolate peanut butter, cookies and cream, chocolate chip cookie dough, and s'more. I didn't take any cheesecake flavors like I did last year just because I didn't want to have to worry about refrigeration...if only I would have known the concrete floor was still going to be frozen!  It would have been the perfect built in ice pack!

My husband helped me set up and since there's not much for him to do with the way I set up as vendor, he left because I didn't think I would need help...wrong!

Before the event even started I got the chance to talk to some other vendors, local business people and sell cupcakes to vendors and competitors.  Once the doors opened to the public, the craziness set in.  It wasn't like the open day craziness since most of the people coming through weren't getting packs to go; they were just getting the cupcakes to eat right then and there. So it was more of a constant but quick line.
 
Thankfully, my mom stopped in and stuck around which helped me big time!  If we got a break in the long line of people, she would hold my containers for me to restock.  Without her there I would have been balancing them or running back and forth from one end of the table to other.  

I loved, loved, loved meeting so many new people, people who had never heard of me before, as well as seeing the loyal customers.  I got a lot of stories from people telling me they'd had my cupcakes at a wedding or other event, or how they had been trying to stop at an open day but I was always sold out by time they made it.  So I'm glad they were able to get cupcakes at the Grilled Cheese Championship!

I was able to sell 555 cupcakes in less than 5 hours!  Amazing!!!  Didn't get any?  Don't worry; next Friday (May 6th) is my monthly open day!  Don't forget that cupcakes make the perfect Mother's Day gift!  Thanks for everyone who attended the Grilled Cheese Championship and thanks for another week of orders!

​I take pride in responding quickly to my customers.  Whether it's a Facebook message, email, phone call, or text message; I try to get back to people as soon as I possibly can.  Even though I take pride in my fast response rate status on Facebook...it can be exhausting!

These days technology has made people (myself included) use to the idea of constant contact.  Sure it's great to be able to contact Steph's Sweet Treats, or other businesses, whenever you want...but as time goes on as a business owner I find myself not wanting to be available 24/7.  For example, when my phone is ringing on Sunday night, going off in the middle of making supper, or I"m getting questions in the middle of a 12 hour baking day....I sometimes just want to wait to respond.  

But I struggle with it so much!  I've had people really like how quickly I get back to them...so it's hard for me to just say "it can wait."  This is definitely my problem, not the customers for contacting me; so PLEASE do not think that.  I'm sure all of you can relate in some way, shape or form...especially if you are a business owner!

I too am guilty of this.  I'm the person that sends an email and taps my fingers waiting for a response.  I've been known not to have much patience so it's probably why I feel this strong need to get back to people.  I'm slowly growing out of this habit as I am learning that people do not need instant responses.  So I guess this blog post is to warn everyone that I will backing off the constant contact I have put out there for the last two and half years.

Steph's Sweet Treats has grown tremendously.  Which is oh so amazing...but also means A LOT more inquires, questions, calls, etc.  Lately I feel like my head is spinning with all the incoming things and my feeling that I need to respond immediately. With a baby on the way I know my need to not be so readily available will increase...and I know that once the baby is here I will not be able to respond as quickly.  

If I can get back to you immediately I will.  But please be understanding if it takes me longer than you are use to.   I have slowed down on responding to people after 4:30 pm, on weekends, and when I am busy baking.  I turn the sound notification off on my Facebook after a certain time now (because being woken up in the middle of the night made for a cranky baker come morning), and overall I try to tell myself that it can wait.  So just know that I am not ignoring you, I'm simply busy at the moment, baking, sleeping, or taking my evening or weekend to myself.  Once I get organized and have a moment to sit down and respond to everything, I will.  

So keep those orders coming because the growth has been amazing!  Just know that I will respond to you as soon as I can :)  Thanks for another week of orders and for a sold out open day last Friday!