Meet Saadia Iqbal | Marketing Professional & Baker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Saadia Iqbal and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Saadia, is there something you can share with us that those outside of the industry might not be aware of?
The one thing that most people are probably unaware of is how much time, effort and tears are involved in each cake or dessert we produce – not to mention cost. Most people view making a cake as grabbing a box from the grocery store and adding a coat of buttercream – and done. That’s not how it works at all. There is so much behind the scenes from start to finish such as quotes, emails, answering questions, consultations, etc. There are a lot of hidden costs that no one thinks of such as packaging. Sometimes, packaging ends up costing more than the ingredients of the cake. The list goes on and on. I could write a book on this question!

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
My current full-time job is working as a Project Manager in digital marketing. I love what I do, but this feature is about my other part-time job/hobby, which is my bakery. I own an in-home bakery in Plano, TX called Buttercream Bliss. I’ve been baking for 10+ years and have definitely come a long way since I started. I was living in Michigan, when I first came up with Buttercream Bliss. My URL on facebook is www.facebook.com/buttercreamblissmi – and that’s where the “mi” comes from at the end. I often get asked that question because I now live in Texas. I started out baking for fun, just for friends and family. After a while, it became a lot of work so I started charging, hoping that I would get less requests since now people had to pay for the cakes they used to get for free. Just the opposite happened. People felt a lot more comfortable ordering cakes now that they were paying for them. And, just like that, the orders started pouring in. My business was doing well, but my prices were also quite low. So, I wasn’t sure if people were ordering because of the prices OR because they loved my cake. When I moved to Dallas, everything changed for me. The market is way better here. All the Pinterest parties really boosted my business. I was only making cakes and cupcakes before. However, everyone wanted a full dessert table. I was forced to learn many more desserts due to the demand. YouTube has been my best friend for that. We have it so much easier these days than bakers from years ago. Before, if you wanted to learn how to do something, you had to take a class. Now, you can pretty much learn just about anything on YouTube. I started working with party planners to make full dessert tables and wedding cakes. Due to the high number of inquires I received daily, I was forced to come up with an order form that really helped me consolidate all my orders into one area. The great demand also allowed me to raise my prices. Some of the challenges I’ve encountered along the way include the following: –I wrote down the wrong date for someone and didn’t deliver a cake for a 1st birthday. I felt horrible that I had ruined such a special occasion for someone’s child. The lesson I learned was to keep a calendar just for my cakes and rely on a printed invoice for each order that I would hang up in a single place so I wouldn’t miss it. –I was delivering a wedding cake on a very hot day and the tiers started slipping and the buttercream was ruined. I was lucky that the cake was being delivered several hours before the wedding. I had time to go home and pretty much re-do the cake. I delivered the cake when it was much cooler outside and was still in time for the wedding. The lesson I learned from this was to consider the weather when delivering the cakes. Also, make sure to chill them in the fridge overnight before making the delivery. –Too many orders and learning how to say no. Almost every weekend is booked up for me way in advance (3 months usually). I’ve learned that my family time is valuable and I need to learn to say no – but professionally. I’ve also learned how to be smart about my orders and take only ones that are worth my time i.e., the amount of money I am making is in line with the amount of time I am spending on each cake. I’ve set minimums all my cakes and desserts to help with that. But, it is because of these obstacles that I was able to grow as a business as well as a person. An accomplishment I’m proud of is winning 3rd place at a cupcake contest I did for a charity. I’m also proud of the fact that I’ve made desserts for large businesses such as Adobe and Forbes as well as worked for and donated to many charitable organizations, fashion show premieres, and so much more. In summary, I will say that this is a VERY stressful business. You have to make sure your client is always happy and your product is perfect. I’ve pulled many all-nighters and shed tears over many orders. But in the end, all the compliments I receive as well as the smiles I get make it worth my efforts! I wouldn’t have it any other way!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I think it depends on what you want to see. I would recommend Shops of Legacy or Legacy West if you want a lot of dining options as well as some shopping. I’ve also taken my visitors to Watters Creek because I love the peacefulness it offers. It’s a great place if you have a family. You can walk around the little river and take some photos. It’s also great for little kids since there is a nice play area there. I also love the 6th floor museum if you are into history. I’ve been there myself many times and also recommend others to go there. I’m not much into the drinking/bar scene so I can’t make recommendations on that but I hear downtown has some great places!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My shoutout goes all my friends and family who are always there to support me and constantly promote me, but the biggest shoutout goes to my husband and my mom. My husband, Zeeshan Iqbal, is always there to help me with anything I need – especially during crunch time! He offers support when I’ve made a mistake and makes me feel better. My mom, Jehanara Makda, is my #1 cheerleader. Her support, love and words of encouragement are key in my success and I am so happy to have her in my life!

Instagram: @buttercreambliss
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saadiaiqbal/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/buttercreamblissmi