"Baking is something that I love to do. It quiets my mind, and it boosts my creativity in sourcing out ingredients and cake designing. I have always wanted to cater to special occasions, particularly birthdays."
CAKES are sure ways to delight any appetite, to bring enormous excitement to any dining table and to warm anyone's heart. They are also great conversation pieces and can create a festive atmosphere in birthdays, weddings, baptisms, graduation and anniversaries.
Almost all cakes are baked to highlight milestones and celebrations. What could most likely distinguish these delectable sweets from Sweet Kiss are the artisans behind each customized masterpiece.
Take it from Michelle Moreno, managing director of Patisserie de Sweet Kiss Inc., who ensures the customers' enjoyment of the confectioneries and all the pleasant memories that go with the custom-made sweets. Nevertheless, the community of bakers and decorators mobilized by the 44-year-old cake entrepreneur shares this ultimate satisfaction and sweet vibe.
Inclusivity is what makes her cakes standouts. She spots talents and skills, and trains them to become cake artists even if the latter have zero experience at all.
From the communities around her, she would scout among the single moms, LGBTQIs, overseas Filipino workers, construction workers and laborers, and turn them into cake artisans.
"We accept anyone as we advocate an inclusive culture even if you have zero knowledge of the skills. What we look for is a person who is aligned with our values and mission," Moreno said. "He or she should enjoy the work and should feel joyful to make other people happy."
She maintains a simple philosophy in life: "Providing food is our business, and we practice life and work balance. We treat each one as a family. Frowning is not allowed when working."
Happiness is reflected in the cakes that Moreno and her team create. Happy bakers create the best cakes to make customers happy.
The master cake artist in Sweet Kiss is a former overseas Filipino worker who came to Moreno to plead for a job during the pandemic.
Moreno coached him, offered a scholarship for his daughter and asked for commitment to join her. Now this master cake artist is an expert and is bound to join cake-decorating competitions.
Moreno is now his "manager" in competitions. And both are determined to give the best quality custom-made cakes for their growing customers.
But it was no sweet route for Moreno, she said that she started with a second-hand oven lent to her by a friend of her mom and seed money from an P18,000 bracelet from her debut, which she pawned.
She learned to bake in 1995 from her Home Economics class in St. Mary's College, Quezon City.
"I was so happy and excited because I can now bake cakes and eat cake up to my heart's content with my siblings, as we only get to eat our favorite chocolate cake during our birthdays. But then I realized we don't have an oven and the ingredients are expensive," she said.
Moreno persevered and hard work paid off. "I have always been enterprising. I sold trinkets and stationery to my classmates when I was 7 for me to have extra money for my allowance. I don't have the privilege to ask my mom to buy things for me as she is a single mom. I have three siblings, and I'm the eldest," she said.
I was already aware of our situation, and looking back, I was forced to mature and be responsible with a lot of things beyond my age. So I became more resourceful. I learned to sell the things I am fond of.
She finished her BS Tourism from the University of Santo Tomas in 2002. She honed her culinary skills while pursuing her degree. Instead of attending a class trip in Bohol, she requested her grandmother to enroll her in a "basic cake decorating with gum paste course" at the Technology Livelihood Resource Center in 2001.
She then took every opportunity to take short-term courses in baking and other allied courses but the rest, she taught herself.
After graduation, she worked as a marketing professional in various marketing agencies as an events coordinator, project manager or model. She worked on a per-project basis as her eyes were already set in building a cake business.
"At that time I was thinking, baking is something that I love to do. It quiets my mind and it boosts my creativity in sourcing out ingredients and on cake designing. I have always wanted to cater to special occasions and particularly, birthdays," she said.
"This idea was more validated during the pandemic. No matter the occasions, whether it is All Saint's Day or Holy Week, someone will celebrate his or her birthday. There is always a demand for birthday cakes."
Starting as a self-proprietor, Moreno first tried her hand in baking revel bars, blondies, butterscotch, chocolate cake and cheesecake. She bakes cakes upon order and became a merchant of various sales platforms.
Soon thereafter, her regular clients grew and word of mouth became her way to advertise her products. In between getting orders, she was also doing her best to train people. This came as no surprise as Moreno has been an achiever and a natural leader since her school days.
According to her, the hardest part in training was how to transfer her own passion to her team.
"How will I make them passionate about their jobs and how will I make them feel the joy that comes with baking cakes?" she asked.
She just buckled down to work so to speak; she trained and made her staff feel the passion and mission in her heart.
"I want to be the person who helped transform the lives of my team in a positive way, the same way I feel when making chocolate cakes and seeing my clients happy. I am happy making other people happy," she quipped.
She believes that when you love what you do, money will follow. Her business took a turn when in 2012, she was contemplating selling her business but a friend suggested the idea of converting the business into a corporation which she did.
As managing director, she sees to it that she empowers her team. "I trust them and make them win. I do my best to be a transformational coach for them. I encourage them to dream big, and I will do my best to guide them."
As of the moment, she relies on the ecommerce online platforms to sell her cakes managing two cloud kitchens with two others in the offing.
The idea is to bring the custom cakes closer to the families with zero hassle; we deliver the cakes to the venues.
"We give optimum customer satisfaction as we treat customers like families and build lasting memories with."
"We value social connectedness and build relationships among us and with our clients."
The first debut cake she made was a fondant cake with fresh flowers; the idea she got from her idol Heny Sison. While the first wedding cake was a cake she set up with her mom at a restaurant in Quezon City.
She could add the finest accessories and, like a cake fairy, she could whip up castle cakes, boho cakes and other imaginable themed cakes that one could think of using the freshest and quality ingredients from cocoa, chocolates, butter, to real fresh eggs.
Moreno beams with pride that for the last 20 years, she and her team have made an impact on almost 99,000 occasions, celebrants and events. Her roster of clients includes executives from the airline industry, business process outsourcing companies to artists from the entertainment industry.
From a second-hand oven, this cake entrepreneur now has a three deck industrial oven and team of 20 full-time staff and six online staff. She has gone a long way since she started her business.
She said that her social enterprise has given her, her children, nieces and nephews, and her extended family the sustainability, comfort and a sweet legacy they all deserved.
QUICK QUESTIONS
What is your biggest fear?
To die not finishing my works and legacy for my kids.
What really makes you anrgy?
Betrayal
What motivates you to work hard?
My kids — my legacy for them.
What motivates you to laugh the most?
My kids.
What did you want to be when you were small? Doctor
What would you do if you won the lotto?
I will build my Foundation that funds start-ups, grant scholarships and build lifestyle Medicine Centers. I cannot be a philanthropist.
If you could share a meal with an individual, living or dead, who would they be?
Jesus
What is the most daring thing you have ever done?
Stayed and lived with a narcissist for almost a decade because I was afraid and I have so many limiting beliefs.
What was the last book you read?
"Atomic Habits"
Which celebrity would you like to meet for a cup of coffee?
Oprah Winfey
What is the one thing you will never do again?
Be with a narcissist and loose myself.
Where will you see yourself in 10 years?
In my Lifestyle Medicine Center.
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