Cake, Hope, & Love | Photo by Jessica Fugett | The Wright State Guardian
Cake, Hope, and Love have been around since the days of Myspace. The majority of Cake, Hope, and Love’s orders book online, now through Facebook and email.
A fan following
“We grew 90 percent of our business through social media,” said Shannon Teague, owner of Cake, Hope, and Love.
Teague started her business from her own home. She worked out of her kitchen until the orders began outgrowing the place, about four years in. The brick and mortar location of the bakery opened in May 2011.
“We’re definitely a destination area, we don’t have foot traffic,” said Teague.
Previously, the location was a shopping center which housed a country store that Teague and her husband would frequent in high school.
“Even with navigation it’s hard to find us,” said Teague. “We chose the place that we’re in because it’s completely sentimental. I own a bakery where my husband and I used to go on dates.”
The cupcake confessional
Teague opens the calendar for a year at a time. She works with the intention to keep the bakery small by focusing on four to five cakes a weekend.
“I have birthday cakes booked through August right now,” said Teague.
She prides herself on the relationships she’s built with her clients through the years. The counter in the bakery is affectionately referred to as the cupcake confessional.
“People wander in when they need to talk, not always for the cupcakes. People sometimes come in and end up staying a while, which is good. That’s what it’s there for,” said Teague.
The one-woman show
Through the week, it is just Teague in the bakery.
“I do consultations and things like that and that allows me time to bake and decorate,” said Teague. “My husband helps me quite a bit.”
Teague only keeps three employees on staff to help out on the weekends during walk-in hours.
“People stick around for quite a while, which I’m okay with,” said Teague.
Learning the art of cake
When Teague changed the bakery’s hours, it left room for more opportunities to provide baking and decorating classes.
“With the new hours it opens up time to do things more one-on-one and do private classes. I love getting to connect with people,” said Teague.
“When I originally opened the bakery, I didn’t want to open for foot traffic. I realized that was such a radical business concept for the Dayton area. Starting in December I was able to change the schedule to free me up to do classes,” said Teague. “I’m trying to cater to the more creative side.”
Teague has plans of launching online classes as well as special needs classes in the future. Additionally, the bakery sells custom sprinkle mixes and cake toppers, according to the Cake, Hope, and Love webpage.
“Over the past several years we have had many wonderful cakes created by the Cake, Hope, and Love team! Each time they keep getting better! Shannon and her team are professional and easy to work with. They strive to provide you with a tasty masterpiece that you sometimes feel guilty for cutting,” said Jenna Clericus in a Google review. “The best part is that the cake tastes just as good as it looks! The team at Cake, Hope, and Love truly loves what they do and it shows! Thanks for helping make wonderful memories for our family.”
Teague prides herself on building relationships and the ability to serve customers for years to come.
“Cake, Hope, and Love has been my bakery for 10 years! We started with them when they were just starting in a kitchen! They did my 18th birthday/graduation cake and all birthdays after that including my 21st,” said Tory Black in a Google review. “We also had them do our wedding cake, which was gorgeous and everything I could ask for! It is now such a joy to get to use them for my children’s things.”
Cake, Hope, and Love can be found in Suite B of 149 N. Fairfield Rd., Beavercreek, Ohio. Customers can stop in on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays or submit their orders online.
