 Welcome back. It's Entrepreneurship Tuesday and it's always awesome to have you streaming in and looking at some of the things we are bringing you on board. And of course today I want to talk so much about the cake industry. Over the past few years it's a blooming industry and it has seen several strides being advanced and of course quite a number of people have quit their ventures and of course their careers to joining into the industry. And to help us talk more about the industry, I have none other than Jais Maniawe and of course we'll be looking at some of the things she has been making. We'll be having a look at them, of course I'm having them live on the studio. But before that we can interact with us on our social media platforms. Of course my Twitter handle is at kalex and of course Y254 is our main Twitter account. 254 Channel, you can of course comment on our Facebook page that is Y254. Karibusana, Jasfin Wanzila Shikuku. Thank you Alex. Yes, yes. Have you ever been here before? It's my first time. It's your first time. Alright Karibusana. Thank you so much. I want you to introduce yourself, the company, what you've been doing and how it will flow into it. My name is Jasfin, as you have said. I am a home baker. I have been baking since 2014. I started baking as a hobby just for friends and family and because I love cake. So just make cake to eat. And then with time I realized more people are coming in and saying can I give you some amount? You bake for me a cake. And with time I started now selling cakes. So we've been doing it since 2016 after date. So you are the founder of J-Kix dealer. Yes I am. Since 2014. Alright, apparently I understand that you had to quit your career. Yes. When would you quit your career? I must begin by saying that I have a background in actual science. That's what I trained in. And I had a passion to do medicine. Alright. So I found myself doing a course and realized my passion was not there. So once I finished college, as I was looking for a job, I drifted into baking. Alright. So since my passion was not in actual, I discovered cake. When did you come into actual science and yet it was not your passion? Well, after I did my KCSE, I had intended to pursue medicine. So I missed out on the cut of points. So I took the next best course, which is actual science. So that's where now my passion was in medicine but I did actual science. Alright, you did mention that. We went after Kazi. Yes, Kazi to Lita Futa. From 2012, I kept looking for a job for about two years. And I got my first temporal job in the end of 2014. Alright. So it was quite a while and I was already married and I had a daughter by then. Alright. So I needed to get by. So that's where now selling cakes. So you are a mother? Yes, I am a mother of two. I have a daughter and a son, five and two years old. Alright. So before we even talk about the J-Kix deal, let's talk about, you said that before you even went into the industry, Ulika, for some few years before you got even an opportunity. Yes. So how did it that you came to a point and you found, like it's worth for me even to went into this industry? The first job I got, I was earning very little compared to my expenses. And when I looked at the cakes I was selling and I really enjoyed it. So I just weighed my options and decided, let me do something that I love doing. I would not mind wake up and do a cake. Right. Then go to a job that I'm not passionate about. I think that was a turning point. And again, being a young mother, I needed to spend time with my child. Alright. And baking gave me that option because I could do it at the comfort of my home and at the same time, I would make ample time with my baby. So in the process of being a stay at home mother, you discovered the talent of baking? Yes. You began in terms of giving your family in France? Yes, I did. And even in church, I would bake for kijuns. I would just get the ingredients and bake for them, including family for the birthdays. And then now I realized I could actually make a living out of this. Right. Yes. So 2014 was the time that you launched out in terms of even your company? Actually, we started the company around 2015, much later. So 2014 was? 2014 I had started baking the cakes for family, but I had never thought of doing it as a business. Alright. So by 2015, that's when we put ourselves out there. Now we got a name. Now we would even tell more people that we can do this. And even now started doing wedding cakes by then. Alright. Now I want us now to enter into Jake Kix Delight. And apparently you said it began officially in 2015. Yes. Where your passion is, that is what you've been doing. So far because the industry is really booming up with quite a number of significant people now even quitting their careers as you have done personally. Yes. Why would people quit their careers in terms of taking their, there's something that they feel like this is what I'm into? Recently there has been more publicising of the culinary arts and other arts and more people appreciating them. And the convenience of doing your own business at your own hours. So you're finding more people venturing into such businesses and I would say the pay is good. Right. It's appreciating. Yes. Because you can be able to plan your own hours. So I've seen many of my baker friends living for more employment to start off on their own. Alright. Yes. So what would be your advice if by chance someone is in the university thinking of a white collar job? I think for those who know me they know I'm a champion for these other jobs, not the former jobs. Alright. Because we have so many youths who are unemployed. The jobs are not forthcoming and we keep waiting for a job. You know that's how we've been brought up to not wait for a job. Actually my mum still prays that I get a job. Really? To date. Yes. So I would tell the young people to embrace what you have. Each one of us, there is what God has placed in us or even in your environment. I never thought that I would make a living out of cakes. It is just something I loved to do. I love eating cakes and now I'm making something out of it. Right. So if we can embrace it more, look at what you have inside of you. Not wait for that bank job. You know that office job and start doing it bit by bit. Alright. Don't wait for that bank job. Don't wait for that collar. I love your sentiments on that. Now looking at the industry right now, it's quite booming up. Yes. With quite a number of people that are venturing into it. How is the demand is applied with such kind of a booming thing? There is quite a demand for cakes, especially custom made right now. With the rise of the social media, there are so many designs and so many flavors out there. So people are becoming more aware of what they want and even in terms of quality. People are more aware they want a fresh cake with butter and away from the traditional cakes we used to know. So that has increased the demand in terms of wanting cake and good cake. Alright, which is that one cake probably from your customers that they feel is the best cake, the one that has ever been on demand? We usually have seasonal popular cakes. Right now we have the lemon poppy which I've brought one today. That one is our best selling right now. It's a lemon cake with poppy seeds and then we layer it with cream. That one we even do for the weddings and we also have sponge cakes like the one we've done today. That one if you want, you know a cake that melts in your mouth and it has a rich taste. The ideal for birthdays. Let's talk about the weddings. How many so far have we done since 2015? About 80 now. About 80? Wow, that's awesome. How has the trend been and how have you kept the consistency? We love weddings. We are just coming together with people who are coming together to build families. So we tend to do more. So we have been leaning towards doing more weddings over time. Right now we do about one wedding in a week and in the peak months we do up to three in a week. So for you you have to keep it for the clients who want. We meet with the bride mostly and then we hear what is it that they have visualized for their wedding and then we come up with the design. Sometimes we do themed cakes sometimes we go with their colours. We come up with the design for them. Alright, let's have a look probably at this particular video that you have done. This one, this full cake. Yes. That one we did it on seventh. That was last Saturday for a bride. It was last weekend? Yes, on seventh. Her theme was mint green and hot pink with a dash of silver and she wanted something that she would see from where she is sitting in her masterpiece. So we came up with this. So on presumption how would you rate the supply that is in terms of the wedding centre for other occasions? Like graduations, birthday parties? Weddings. Nowadays more people are doing more weddings so I would say the demand for wedding cakes is much much more right now. Even on the occasion of cakes people are celebrating occasions more. So we do both. So demand for both is quite high and significant as per it is. Alright, let's take a look at how things are happening because when we are talking about the trend that is there, the cake industry going up daily and most people are venturing into it what would be one of the advices to give someone who is probably sitting and saying I want to begin the same? I would advise them to take time to learn because personally I just started without training and figuring out how to take time and there are several schools right now that can offer the training that would really help probably apprentice with somebody else who is doing the business. You said you never went to any class? Yes. How did you go and do all this? It's an interesting story. After high school I went back to my former school for a job and our matron was my neighbour so she would call me to mix the cakes for her and then of course I would be rewarded with a cake. So she is the first person who trained me on how to bake a basic cake. Then now from there I kept experimenting coming up with recipes sometimes they backfire sometimes you improve on them and I must say right now we have really grown now we have we specialize in custom cakes we pride in very little sugar in the cake fresh and very delicious so we've built on that with time. Alright How have you begun having been given basic basic needs in terms of the baking? How have you kept the consistency to your clients? What keeps us consistent is having a good product that is one and by the time we are giving out a cake we have tried and tried it out it's fail proof you know it is good and then the consistency whatever you order today we will get better if not the same and keeping that relationship we have had clients coming back about 5 years now and then now keeping that relationship the customer relationship is very important so that has kept us going Wow customer relationship is very vital and that's your sentiment and it's quite important that even young entrepreneurs to know that well what was the reaction when you told your career advancing to this? At first he was not very amused because he always tells me that I have so much potential to pursue academics and be what I would want to be but one time he just took a record of the cakes I was selling and then he told me wow you sold about 70,000 this month and I was shocked myself he started supporting me that was before I got my equipment so he went and took some money and bought me now equipments so he became very supportive and he is usually behind our branding and all that he is very supportive when you mentioned about equipments probably someone sitting at home fainting I need more than 300,000 to begin my bakery what would you advise someone it's too big for me with mega equipments we just started with I actually began by selling that individual cake 2000 and I buy a piping bag I kept growing and I usually advise everyone who comes even for training because I do train that you keep pay yourself and set aside some money to buy equipments because cake equipment can be expensive but you can build on with time you buy as you go and the most important equipments that you need you need an oven and a mixer those ones the commercial ones cost around 100,000 so with that one you can be able to go but I would not tell somebody just stay back because you don't have money start small and grow yourself as you go as I did so the prime thing that are needed is an oven and a mixer these two you must have those ones you must have I have seen people doing the hand one and we did we really give us the same product yes it does I started with the muiko so you began with the muiko then or the way now the most important thing is the science behind the baking the equipment will give you the result so you start with what you have awesome you start with what you have that's nice I want to talk about the cakes you brought in today this seems like blueberry yes it is I have done a sponge cake and then it has layers of blueberry filling and whipped cream and the white around it is a chocolate cake it's a very moist cake this one is lemon poppy pound cake it's a lemon cake with poppy seeds and then it has whipped cream and then the dripping chocolate it's called ganash let's talk about the duration of time that you took to prepare just this one blueberry cake that one takes about 40 minutes to bake to full completion to bake and then completion as baking around 2 hours alright so roughly 4 2 hours in full and everything else so 2 hours are more than enough for you to just prepare a cake and disperse to your client do you do delivery? yes we do so from home we are best in loa kabete so for the occasional cakes like birthdays, graduations we do deliver within Nairobi for wedding cakes we deliver even after a country right free? after a country of course we have to pay but the other cakes we deliver free within Nairobi how much would this cost? that one is 2500 for a kg for a kg it's 2500 alright 2500 going all the way up for a kg it's 2500 this other one is 2000 alright let's talk about now going back to the charges if by chance someone came to you and wanted to do cakes for a wedding the rough estimation that you would give them normally it would depend on the number of guests you are working with but on average we charge from 35000 for around 300 guests so depending on the size, the design and also the flavour what do you mean the price of the flavour? the flavour, the design also the number of guests and also some of the decorations that you put on them so a custom made pad a tree and the apples on the side that's a theme cake that one would cost more than the regular round cakes with flowers how do you make a tree from a cake of a tree cake? I don't need a structure so you come up with a structure to support the cake because now that will be defying gravity so you come up with a structure then you input the cake then the leaves and the flowers those ones we craft them by hand alright so even the part of the days and people will eat alright so it's called now the part of the one who is baking the cake to know what to do and what to use so the idea that you have and bring it on board yes we put it now into we execute the idea and we make sure now we make it as edible as possible apart from the structure or the other items are edible alright I love the way you mentioned that and Alilani had mentioned about social media and its impact towards your business which midi primarily have you vented into? mostly we have used Facebook and WhatsApp so in Facebook we post the cakes that we have if we have offers then interact with our clients we also post on the groups and on the timelines then on WhatsApp we keep in touch with our clients we update them on the offers we have the new flavors and we also book cakes through WhatsApp so mostly we've used Facebook and WhatsApp so if by chance I want to book for WhatsApp is there anything like we deposit because WhatsApp people are doing it anyway and everywhere yes normally we ask for about 50% and then the rest of the mountains don't deliver so for you doing it is not just about dispensing it has to be quality yes we ensure every cake is custom made made and it's quality yes that's amazing and if by chance you are to look at the industry and the persons that are into it how would you gauge in terms of your company and its growth in the next few years we have a plan to be renown in the region for making custom cakes region that is East Africa and beyond we want to be known for making custom design cakes handcrafted in the next like 2 years we want to be on the map so we want to make delicious cakes and unique designs alright that one cake that you ever made and you felt like this one was amazing which one was it this one we made recently the one that had a tree and the apples we came up with a theme with the mother of the bride she wanted the fruits of the spirit yes so we came up with the idea of a tree and then the fruits were the 9 fruits the 9 fruits of the Holy Spirit in the Bible I must say I was very excited to do that and the bride was a surprise the bride was very excited about it so who had chosen the design the mother of the bride came up with a theme and then I did the design work yes so these leaves are they still custom made yes they I did now you joined them together even the little apples alright that's amazing that's my favorite so far alright the one that you felt for really really really I have done the best for this one wow that's awesome and of course asking of the basil is that one that you feel like which one was that we had a cake that we did that was a naked cake and the bride insisted we came up outdoors and it was very hot so after some time the cake started sliding so it was not a very nice experience but we were able to remedy it and by the time she was cutting the cake was still intact infact she didn't even realize that so we learned from that and if we do naked cakes we do them indoors because of the weather awesome that's amazing now that's the cake that you have managed to do and it's quite amazing so what are you trying to venture into probably after now this is quite a blooming one and you are really making good strides and it's quite something amazing what's the next thing that we're looking forward into in the business I have a plan to upgrade my skill to do the custom designs more into sculpting and the sugar craft that one is in the pipeline I'm also planning to go back to school I believe alright I believe we have so much potential that God has given us so I intend to go back to school sometime next year alright to venture into I want to pursue medicine alright it's another of my passions so I'll be joining in September next year so you are not satisfied you can settle down with what already you have you want to venture into something new not yet feel like I can do more so far you still have kids so you want to quit stay at home activities yes my last born is going to school in January alright so I'll have more time on my hands and I believe I can do more can go to school and still pursue this wow awesome that's amazing and I'm really happy to see this and even the bigger mind of an entrepreneur is to see that if you achieved something then you must go for something bigger than what you have already achieved who is that one person who inspires you a lot in terms of entrepreneur refilled that one person that you feel like you feel like this is quite a good one in the cake industry there is a local baker she's called Beatrice of Joy Bell's cakes she inspires me because she does very nice custom designs and she has really grown over the years there is another international baker he's called the cake boss alright I would want to get to that level he does also very good work you also want to hit the international mark yes I want to achieve that alright that's amazing it's always nice and you make some of the varieties that you do alright we also do event planning for weddings and then on the cakes we do wedding cakes we also do corporate cakes, birthdays graduations and all occasion cakes yes in terms of the flavors we have the sponge cakes like the blueberry one we've done today we have the black forest we have quite a number alright that's amazing you're making quite good strides in it but now I have a question it's a simple one and I know you love it and it's something that mamas usually do even at home how about joining Achama and one of the impact probably if you have ever been one actually in one you're already in one when I started baking would get a challenge you want to get funding if you are not in formal employment it would be a challenge to get funding so I got introduced to Achama where we do table banking every month we come together, give contributions works like a circle but it's just among a few women about 15 of us and we've been able to grow in the last 4 years and we get loans there at around 1% interest alright so you come you save within yourself or among yourself among ourselves so we have savings every month and they also loans in advance you can get a loan repay over a certain period of time it's not the usual merry-go-round and we have been able to grow so much because right now we get loans up to 200,000 and it's among 15 of us so I would say it has really helped me to grow do you think our generation we are accepting the Chamas do you think it's time to embrace them? I think it's picking but we need some discipline just give us some of the things you feel like you need to address on the Chamas basically it's just the discipline you need to know that you save this money and have a goal now most people would want to take the money and get off the grid and not pay back but once you have the goal like why am I saving then you would be able to have the discipline was from of course Josephine you know save and we have a lot of discipline and of course he called Prashatapalali Rudisha Pesha just the amount of taking and running away with it Rudisha Pesha those are just some of the comments that Josephine has made of course she is the founder of J-Cake's Delights and this is just an amazing of those people that are doing entrepreneurial field things and we appreciate as Y-254 appreciate your feedback keep interacting with us of course our social media platforms of course are Y-254 on Facebook Y-254 channel on Twitter and of course our SMS line is 20154 starting with the one Y-254 keep it Y-254 we are coming up to conclude the show big up asante sana kwa kuja we appreciate