Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Egipciaco.
Hi Ashley, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My journey in the kitchen started when I was a child watching my grandmother in her kitchen. As I got older, the love for being in the kitchen kept growing. I am originally from The Bronx, New York, but I also grew up in North Carolina. I started my education in baking with Wilton classes, which I took with my parents, which led to my mother and I created custom cakes together for friends and family. I have been teaching myself since then, using tools like instructional videos and decorating books.
I started my business in 2014, originally in New York while working full time, and created a name for myself. My custom orders began to increase, and my skills continued to improve, but my husband and I decided to move to Florida in 2015 to provide a better life for our children. I put my business on hold until my career change in 2020 and that is when I began working on preparing to open our bakery up again. We kept the same name which is Bella Vida Sweets. As I started recipe experimenting and preparing to open in the new year, my life took a turn I wasn’t ready for. My grandmother, who was the reason my love for the kitchen started, lost her battle with Cancer. Although I didn’t know how I was going to continue without her, I knew she would be so proud of me for following my dreams.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
No, it has not been a smooth road, but I have learned through my journey that it is not supposed to be. During the learning process in my earlier years, I failed more times than I can count. Although it was frustrating at times, I kept pushing and that is what I need to do everyday to ensure the road will get smoother as my journey continues; some of the specific things I struggled with were learning how to use fondant, making roses out of buttercream and creating the perfect buttercream recipe.
As you know, we’re big fans of Bella Vida Sweets. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about the brand?
Bella Vida Sweets is a home-based bakery. We specialize in boutique desserts and custom cakes. Our products range from brownies and cake cups to custom cakesicles and large theme cakes. We believe cakes are part of almost every major celebration a person has throughout their lives, so we pride ourselves on delivering memorable experiences for our clients. We want readers to know our products are scratch-made and expand even beyond what we currently offer on our website. They can always reach out to us if they have any questions or ideas for an event that they need help bringing to life.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
The most important lesson I have learned is that success is not achieved overnight. It is easy to be excited about your journey when things are going great, but it is the ability to remain excited through the hard times that will ultimately lead to success.
Pricing:
- Cake Cups start at $3 each
- Brownies start at $4 each
- Cakesicles start at $3 each
Contact Info:
- Email: info@bellavidasweets.com
- Website: www.bellavidasweets.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/bellavidasweets
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/bvsweets
