So, I decided to try some new recipes. Here's some pictures! From left to right they are: - Cherry coke - a chocolate and coke flavoured cake with a cherry syrup centre, topped with a coke glaze and vanilla buttercream icing. Finished off with chocolate strands (dairy free, of course!)
- Ultimate gingerbread - a sticky gingerbread cupcake with a ginger topping and peanut butter crunch sprinkles!
- Toast and marmalade - breadcrumbs mixed into the cake mix, an orange flavoured icing and topped with orange.
- Be Mine - this cake has turkish delight mixed into it, with a rosewater flavoured icing. Topped with sugar butterflies and a Love Heart sweet.
The one at the end are the cherry coke ones. I took a load of these with me when I went away for the weekend, and they were VERY popular! Also, I finally got round to taking a photo of my new cupcake stand: Lastly, I'm getting very excited about making up my sample packs for the cafes etc. around here! Here are some of my supplies: Basically, that's everything that's been going on recently. I hope you have enjoyed my pictures!
Robyn x
I am really starting to hate meetings! I had to go to the Job Centre today. I had a meeting to sign on for Job Seekers Allowance, because apparently you have to be signed on before you can claim the New Enterprise Allowance. It was all pretty confusing, to be honest. It seems like it is really hard to get information out of people over the phone or on the website, so I was already confused and had filled in the form wrong before I even got there! So now I am signed on, waiting for a decision as to whether I can get the NEA or not, and in the meantime I have to be searching and applying for jobs, even though I am trying to start my own business! It's driving me insane!
Anyway, on the bright side, I emailed Rosie from the Princes Trust about my Will It Work grant. She emailed back to say that she had received my form and it has been approved! I should get my cheque in a couple of weeks, which is great! Just in time to make my sample packs!
So basically, that's what's been going on in the past few days. Boring, I know, but this seems to be what it's like setting up your own business.
Hopefully I will have some pictures of more cakes for you soon!
Robyn x
So it has been an eventful few days, so much so, that I haven't been able to get on here and keep you updated!
The boxes and cupcake cases for my sample packs have arrived! I will take a photo soon and post it here.
I went to my little sister Caitlin's birthday party yesterday. I made four different batches of cupcakes and took them with me. They certainly were a hit! Here are some photos. In the first photo, from left to right are: - Marshmallow madness: a light sponge with dairy free white chocolate buttons mixed in, pink dairy free butter icing with pink sugar glimmer sprinkled over it, and a hidden marshmallow inside!
- Coco-Lime Rocks: a snowball type cake, made with limes and coconut, topped with a lime icing and dipped in coconut
- Cherry Bakewell: like a bakewell tart, but without the pastry! These are topped with a yummy custard icing and a cherry
- Sweet Shop Cupcakes: a fluffy lemon flavoured sponge with a lemon curd filling, topped with icing, dolly mixtures and jelly beans!
It was a lot of fun making these, but definitely more fun testing them! I also found a photo of the cupcake that started it all: the After Eight Cupcake! This was taken at Christmas. This cupcake went down so well, it inspired me to try new things and basically spurred me on to start this whole crazy gluten and dairy free venture!
My other little sister Eilidh wants me to make a dinosaur cake for her birthday, so I am trying to come up with some ideas for that. I have some, but I may need to practice! Watch this space!
I hope you have enjoyed drooling over the pictures, and I hope that one day you will all get to taste my yummy gluten and dairy free cupcakes!
Robyn x
Well, after staring at the computer for most of the day, throwing bits of paper around, and many, MANY, breaks, I have finally finished my business plan. Sent it off to Alastair, and now I am just waiting for some feedback. Also, I the market research survey is going well, and when I get enough responses I can also put that into my plan.
Aled's mum also made some quick cupcakes for me to practice my icing skills on, and I had great fun playing with my icing syringe. Here are some photos! They might not be perfect, but it was fun! I'm really enjoying trying out new things. Anyway, I'm going to try and sort out the New Enterprise Scheme with the job centre too. Another fun day of paperwork ahead :(
Anyway, have a great evening and go gluten free!!
Robyn x
Hi everyone! I went to see Alastair today, and he has given me some great advice about my business plan, so I should get that finished today. He also suggested I use an online survey provider to get some more information on my market for the plan. So, I would be very grateful if you could fill it in, it shouldn't take more than two minutes.
It is basically about people who are gluten and dairy free, and if they would like to see products like mine in cafes etc. So here is the link!
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/28LBKRC
Later on, I am going to have a look for some new recipes to try for my little sister's birthday party on Sunday. I will post some pictures up when they are done!
Robyn x
Well, I suppose that a lot of people have a panic regarding money when they are starting a business. I'm only glad that I am probably not alone.
I got in contact with the Job Centre today. I was inquiring about the New Enterprise Allowance, which basically means that if you are unemployed and starting a new business, then they will fund you £66 for the first 16 weeks and then £33 for the next 16 weeks. I thought I would apply for it when I had spent some of my savings, so today I phoned them to find out about getting an appointment to sort it out.
First phone call was a disaster! The guy I spoke to sounded like a hillbilly and just said, VERY slowly, "You need to apply online, got to www.gov.uk. Bye." So that was that. Went onto that website and found nothing about the allowance. So I phoned back. Second phone call resulted in the woman saying "Oh you need to be on benefits to get that, I will put you through to your local job centre." I was then put on hold and the call was cut off. Great. Third phone call seemed better. Finally got through to the job centre and was told I would be called back.
So I got the call back. Now, wait for this. Apparently, to claim this allowance, you need to be already claiming benefits. I was told to apply for Job Seekers Allowance. The reason I have not applied for this is that I left my job voluntarily. Basically I have to apply for it, which will then allow me to get an appointment at the job centre where I can discuss the New Enterprise Allowance. Complicated? Seems that way!
So today I have felt all spun in a circle and worrying about money :( It makes me realise why people are scared of starting a business!
On the bright side, I made a basic butter icing for my test cakes, and used my snazzy new decorating syringe thingy to make them look pretty, and work out a basic icing recipe. Here's a picture! So these made me happier, even though I am poor and unemployed! Also, Aled's mum and dad helped me with my business plan, which I will take to Alastair tomorrow. At the moment it feels like an uphill struggle, but I hope that, soon, I will get there!
Thanks for listening to my ramblings!
Robyn x
Hi everyone, this is my last post of the day, sorry if you are getting sick of me already! So today I have managed to source some great things for the business for good prices. I have bought some nice red boxes for my sample packs, as well as red and white polka dot cases. Got some gluten free flour for a discounted price from Amazon, and there was an offer on Pure Dairy Free Sunflower Spread at Tesco with 2 for £2, so I bought a load of that. I also got a cheap Pay as You Go mobile to use just for the business. This is for two reasons: I don't want everyone to know my personal number, and it means every time that phone rings I can answer it "Rockin' Robyn's, how can I help?" as opposed to "What do you want?" :D It might seem a bit excessive, but, at the end of the day, if I have no ingredients I can't make sample packs, and if I don't look professional, cafes and other people may not want to buy from me. At least, that's what I'm telling myself! As much as I like shopping, I have to keep telling myself that it's ok to be buying these things, as I actually need them! On another topic, I have baked a basic batch of cupcakes today and I will ice them when I have time tomorrow. I did this so that I could work how how much it costs to make them and then I can put this in my business plan so I can can price them for sale. At one point, Aled and Pru switched off all of the sockets and lights in the house, just so we could look at the meter and work out how much electricity it uses! It felt really stupid, but it worked!
I have an appointment with Alastair at Business Gateway on Thursday to go through my business plan. So far, this has been the part that I have had the most difficulty with. I am going to spend as much time tomorrow as I can going through and filling it in. It's great that the Business Gateway service is available and so helpful!
So basically, that's what's been going on today! Hope you are all still with me, and not asleep, drooling steadily onto your keyboard. If so, WAKE UP! :D
Just kidding
Well today has been eventful so far. I went along to an information session with someone from the Princes Trust which is now known as Youth Business Scotland. She gave me lots of information about low interest rate loans, grants and the funding process.
Basically, what happens is you apply for funding (either a loan or a grant). This is then passed on to a manager. She then goes through things with you and looks at your business plan. You then go to a funding panel (which kind of sounds like Dragon's Den, but I was reassured it really isn't), and they ask you questions and stuff, and then make a decision. The great thing about it is you will never be sent to the panel if there is something glaringly wrong with your plan!
So, I inquired about the grant. I wont bore you with the details, but the point is I will be able to get a grant of £250 without my business plan, just to get things going, and then I can choose to apply for the further grant of up to £750.
I am so happy about this, because I was starting to worry about where the money for ingredients and boxes for my sample packs was going to come from!
The day isn't over yet, but this is just a quick update about what's going on!
Robyn x
Well, I never expected that starting a business would be easy, but it seems like there are so many hoops to jump through! I'm not saying they aren't necessary, but they ARE confusing!
Last week I went to Business Gateway, and had a meeting with a nice chap who gave me lots of information about things I need to do. At the time I didn't feel so scared and confused, but now as I sit down to do everything, there seems to be so much!
I have now filled in the form to register my business with the Council, and that will be posted off today. I am proposing my business opening date as the 18th of May this year, so not long!
This will then lead to an inspection of the kitchen in the house, just to make sure it's suitable for the purpose. I had a look at some publications from the Food Standards Agency, which gave guidelines about food production premises. However, I found a line which said that if the business is in a home, some guidelines don't apply. I thought, "great, maybe it wont be so complicated!" That was until I realised there was nothing saying which ones DID apply. So, yeah, that's confusing!
I have also been looking into grants etc., because even though I have most of my equipment, I still need something to pay myself wages and to buy ingredients. I found one which said that the grant cannot be used for things such as new equipment, goods or wages. Helpful.
So at this rate, it looks like a loan is in order. Not a great start. So basically, I feel a bit lost. Guess it's time to meet up with the Business Gateway guy again!
Robyn x
Well, it has been 10 months since I finished University, and I was having a bit of a dilemma - mainly, what the heck do I do now?! I thought that by taking some time off and working some part-time jobs that I would have the time to work out what I want to do. It didn't quite work out like that.
I ended up working a lot, and spending all of my free time visiting friends and family, and no time thinking about what to do. So I quit my job.
Now, this may seem foolish, and for the first few weeks after handing in my notice, I agreed. I couldn't decide on anything I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I felt that I HAD to use my degree, but nothing that directly involved my degree appealed. I thought "well, how about a graduate scheme? It doesn't take too long, and there is almost always a job at the end of it!"
So, I started trawling through graduate schemes, with no joy. I really didn't want to relocate, and this seemed to be a necessity. I also didn't want to work in an office, Monday to Friday, 9-5. I knew that I would lose the plot after a while, and would most likely have to be forcibly removed from the office after having a nervous breakdown and making a fort out of my desk and some spinny chairs.
Yet again, I was at the point of despair, having no idea what to do with my life. I applied for jobs to get an income in the meantime, but there isn't much in North Berwick, and the jobs in Edinburgh were mostly low hours split across multiple days which would rack up train fares.
Now, I know what you are thinking here: "is there a point to this, and will it become obvious anytime soon? I have more important things to do than read the ramblings of a 25 year old graduate who is in crisis!"
The answer to this is, yes, there is a point, and here it is!
I have decided to start my own business!
Yes, you read right. I have decided to bake gluten and dairy free goodies and sell these to the lovely people out there in the real world! There are many cafes in North Berwick and the surrounding areas, and I know from working in one that they tend to buy in their gluten and dairy free goods from big manufacturers, and I don't see why they shouldn't buy home made from me.
So, that's basically what has been going on so far, and I intend to update this blog with the process of setting up the business, and how things are getting along.
Thanks so much for taking the time to read this! I hope you join me in this journey, and I hope is enjoyable for both myself and anyone reading this!
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