Osseowomenbiz7 24 1r

PRESS NEWS&&www.pressnews.com

July 2014

Women in Business • Thursday, July 24, 2014 pressnews.com

Nadia Cakes owner Abby Jimenez fi nds successBY SAMARA POSTUMACONTRIBUTING WRITER

For Abby Jimenez, owner of popular Nadia Cakes in Maple Grove, business ownership hap-pened almost acciden-tally.

Abby was pregnant with her third child and juggling a newborn and one-year-old. “I knew I wasn’t going to be able to go back to my job,” she said.

So she signed up for a cake decorating class dur-ing her extended materni-ty leave and really enjoyed it. That class was her only formal training ever.

Soon she started mak-ing fondant cakes here and there thinking if any-thing she could make a

couple a month to help pay for groceries. She made what she now calls a “choppy” website and handed out cards nam-ing her endeavor after her second daughter.

“I didn’t want my boss to know what I was doing on the side so going by ‘Cakes By Abby’ was out of the question,” Jimenez said explaining the name of the business. “We called my middle daugh-ter Nadia Cakes so it was fi tting.”

The business grew quickly with cake baking reality shows on major networks and cupcake shops gaining in popular-ity after a year and a half of working from home, Jimenez decided to open a retail location.

It was harder than it seemed. “We couldn’t get fi nancing,” she said explaining that walking into a bank with no busi-ness or baking experience besides a home business wasn’t going to cut it in the current economy so with a $5,000 loan and a credit card, she opened up shop.

“We were fl at broke, we didn’t even have money for change in the register,” she said.

Nadia Cakes was suc-cessfully immediately in Palmdale, California and soon, two months after opening soon, Jimenez was asking her husband, Carlos to quit his job to become the CFO. The fi rst thing he did was consolidated the couple’s

debt. At the time the cou-ple had $18,000 in credit card debt in addition to the opening of the retail store.

Just two years after opening their Palmdale location the couple knew they wanted to expand but weren’t sure where. They were also ready to get out of California.

“We took a 5 1/2 week cross country trip and looked at the market, this area really didn’t have anything like it,” Jimenez said.

During construction of the Maple Grove bou-tique-like cupcake shop, she appeared on TLC’s Cupcake Wars and won $10,000.

Nadia Cakes owner Abby Jimenez sits with an Icing Smiles child, Maisy, and a puppy named Danger. Nadia Cakes donates cakes for sick children like Maisy through Icing Smiles.

CUPCAKES... to page 3

pressnews.com Women in Business • Thursday, July 24, 2014

Local woman launches business during third pregnancy

Jimenez and her family now reside in the Cham-plin area.

Again, their second shop found instant suc-cess. “Our customers are very intense and loyal,” she said. Don’t believe her? Check their Face-book page and you’ll see customers just going cra-zy over new fl avors and specials on a daily basis.

So what makes Nadia Cakes cupcakes so spe-cial? The cupcakes speak for themselves. “We be-lieve in using high quality ingredients and we really don’t scrimp, everything is baked right on site and we’re consistent,” she said.

Jimenez also has a cupcake guarantee. “Our menu is our promise, if you see a cupcake listed on our menu, you’ll be able to have that cup-cake,” she said noting that the stores bake until 90 minutes before close.

Nadia Cakes is in the process of opening a third, undisclosed loca-tion and might even have another TV show op-portunity in the works. Things are going well for this mom run business and Jimenez explains it the best way, “people just love cupcakes!”

Nadia Cakes is located in the Fountains of Arbor Lakes and offers a variety of cupcakes every single day besides Christmas Day.

CUPCAKES... from page 2


‘Come on in, sit right down’ at Linda’s Cafe in Rogers BY MEGAN HOPPS

SUN PRESS NEWSPAPERS

“Sometimes you wan-na go where everybody knows your name,” and they do, at Linda’s Cafe in Rogers.

Linda Grady opened her restaurant in 2006 with the help of her best friend, Linda.

“So the restaurant’s name is quite fi tting,” Grady jokes. “This has been a dream I’ve had since I was young. I ended up calling Linda. She was already in the restaurant business so I knew she could help.”

And so, Linda’s Cafe

was born. The cafe’s doors were opened on a hot summer August morning in 2006 and have been revolving ever since. Whipping up everything from a stack of home-made pecan waffl es to a tasty country fried steak and cheese sub, Linda’s Cafe has something to of-fer all kinds of appetites.

“Almost everything we make is homemade,” Lin-da said. “We boil all of our own potatoes, make our own sauces, gravy and soups. We special-ize in breakfast, but one of our guest favorites is our homemade hot sand-wiches.”

When Linda’s fi rst

opened they were only open for lunch, but be-cause the restaurant was loved by many Linda de-cided to open early for breakfast.

One of Linda’s favor-ite things about the cafe is that it’s full of friendly faces.

“Every morning I have eight regulars that come in and sit at the counter,” Linda said. “They’re all from around here. Most are retired farmers. One of them recently moved to Alaska. We’re going to miss him a lot. One time he brought in a musky fi sh and we mounted on the wall. He thinks that’s why people come here, to

see his fi sh,” she laughed. Linda added that an-

other family that visits the cafe regularly often brings in toys and gives them away to the children that happen to be visiting the cafe that day.

“I could not be more happy with how the ca-fe’s evolved,” Linda said. “That was my dream. I wanted to open my doors and welcome the commu-nity into my dining room and really feel at home.”

Contact Megan Hopps at [email protected]


Cannot be combined with insurance. Expires 9/30/14Kids under 14 ‘Rx’ eyewear.

We accept and most insurance plans.


Juggling a career and new motherhood

The role women play in society and within their own households has changed dramatically over the last half-century. According to Pew Re-search Center analysis of the Decennial Census and American Community Surveys Integrated Public Use Microdata Sample fi les, in 1960 just 10.8 per-cent of married mothers were the primary earners in households that in-cluded children under the age of 18. That fi gure rose steadily over the next 50 years, reaching 40.4 per-cent by 2011. Though the steady rise in those per-

centages makes the 2011 fi gure less than surpris-ing, the fact remains that today’s working mothers have more on their plate than ever before and are under more pressure to juggle those responsibili-ties than their predeces-sors.

Juggling a career and motherhood is diffi cult for any woman, but the transition to wearing two hats can prove an espe-cially diffi cult adjustment for new mothers. The following are a handful of tips for new mothers about to embark on the challenging task of jug-

gling a career and a grow-ing family.

* Carefully consider ca-reer decisions. Some new mothers respond to moth-erhood by making chang-es with regard to their ca-reers. While adjustments will almost certainly need to be made, it’s impor-tant that women avoid knee-jerk reactions. Some women feel guilty about not spending enough time with their children and ultimately allow that guilt to govern their decisions about their careers.

NEW MOMS... to page 8

Bonnie Lee is the own-er and CEO of Travel Leaders Albertville. She’s been in the indus-try since 1994 and has been continually recog-nized for her innovative ideas and success. She

was recognized by Mpls/St. Paul Busi-ness Journal as one of their “25 Women to Watch” for her leadership and role in the travel community. She and her husband, Walter Lee, still own and run this family business. For over 10 years, Travel Leaders Albert-ville has provided personalized travel ex-periences for vacation travel. Our experi-enced and professional travel agents are here to help you plan the perfect destina-tion wedding, honeymoon or family get-away. We’ll share our insider tips on des-

tinations and help you understand travel’s little complexities. Trust in our travel agents to provide you with the personal attention, expertise and exclusive advan-tages for your next vacation. We are a top sales agency with Travel Leaders, Sandals, Disney, Delta Vaca-tions, Apple Vacations, Princess Cruises and more! We are also a Certifi ed Member of the National Women Business Owners’ Corporation. We are also very excited to announce our new location! While we are staying in Al-bertville, our offi ces will be moving to 5985 Large Avenue NE, across from the new SuperAmerica and Taco John’s, next door to El Bamba restaurant. Stop by on Thursday, September 18 between 2:00 – 6:30pm to see our new building!

Travel LeadersAlbertville


But women who don’t give ample consideration to such decisions may grow to regret them when they fi nd they miss their old jobs and the respon-sibilities and sense of purpose that comes with those jobs. When making career decisions as new motherhood is approach-ing or after it arrives, make a list of the pros and cons to each decision and the motives behind each decision you might make. The more thoughtfully you approach each deci-sion, the happier you’re likely to be with that deci-sion once it’s been made.

* Avoid going over-board at the offi ce. Work-ing mothers are often driven to show their em-

ployers that new mother-hood will not affect their on-the-job performance. In their haste to prove motherhood won’t prove a distraction, new moth-ers may take on more they can chew. Recognize that being a working mother does require an adjust-ment period, especially in the immediate weeks and months after maternity leave has ended and your body has yet to adjust to its new schedule. Accept help when it’s offered and recognize that good em-ployers understand the adjustments you will need to make in the immediate aftermath of a pregnancy.

* Look for ways to re-duce your workload at home. Juggling a career and new motherhood won’t just have an impact at the offi ce. Part of mak-

ing a successful transition from working profession-al to working mother is recognizing that adjust-ments need to be made at home as well. Both new parents are in the same boat, but mothers are the ones who spend the fi rst three months at home with their new child, and during those three months new mothers typically de-velop a certain rapport with their new babies that new fathers do not. Babies may prove more comfortable being fed or rocked to sleep by mom instead of dad. In such instances, look for ways to reduce your workload at home, whether that’s sharing cooking duties or other chores around the house that were once your responsibility alone.

NEW MOMS... from page 7

Balancing work and motherhood


Seattle Sutton’s offers balanced, pre-portioned

health foodBY MEGAN HOPPS

SUN PRESS NEWSPAPERS

Mary and Steve An-drews just opened their new Seattle Sutton’s Healthy Eating (SSHE) store in Rogers. Prior to that, they were the driv-ing force that encouraged Maple Grove’s Seattle Sutton store opening in 2004.

Seattle Sutton’s Healthy Eating provides a conve-nient location along the northwest corridor for people to pick up fresh, nutritionally balanced meals twice a week. Seat-tle Sutton’s heathy meals are freshly prepared, por-tion-controlled, and fol-low guidelines of health and nutrition experts.

“When I started with Seattle Sutton’s Healthy Eating in 2003 I had zero

experience in business,” said Manager Mary An-drews. “My degree is in journalism and mass communication, so I real-ly had to learn on the fl y.”

SSHE is a family-owned Illinois-based company that offers a convenient approach to healthful eating. The meal program is scientifi cally designed, follows guide-lines of health and nutri-tion experts, and has over 25 years of proven results.

The company was founded in 1985 by Seat-tle Sutton, to help address patients’ needs to lose weight while improving other health issues such as diabetes, hypertension and heart disease along the way. Seattle Sutton’s dedication to health con-tinues today.

“Between the two lo-

cations we have a small staff of fi ve, and all of us have been on the Seattle Sutton’s program at one point,” Andrews said. “When I went on the plan myself, I was surprised to see my cholesterol level drop 20 points in just fi ve weeks.”

Seattle Sutton’s recipes and meal plans are made without artifi cial fl avor-ings or preservatives. The meals come in three dif-ferent portion sizes and SSHE also has a vegetar-ian option meal plan.

“Seattle Sutton’s can help you achieve your health goals, whether you’re seeking weight loss, lowered blood pres-sure, more stable blood sugar levels, better nutri-tion, or simply conve-nience,” Andrews said. “It’s a great option for anyone who wants nutri-tionally balanced, por-tion-controlled, fresh and delicious meals, without having to plan, shop, or cook.”

Seattle Sutton’s has been in Minnesota since 2002, with 26 retail loca-tions in and around the Twin Cities and Roches-ter.

To learn more about Se-attle Sutton Healthy Eat-ing, call 763-633-3006 or email [email protected], or visit www.seattlesutton.com.

“It’s been a great run in Maple Grove and we’re excited to expand our ser-vice to Rogers,” Andrews said.


Switching jobs? Do so with grace and decorumWomen leave jobs for

various reasons. Some women cite disparities in pay, an inability to ad-vance through the com-pany or incompatibility with a particular place of business as their reasons for seeking new employ-ment, while others leave jobs to take time off for family obligations, only to reenter the workforce at a later time.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics say the average person changes jobs 10 to 15 times (with an average of 11 job changes) over the course of a career. Reports about employ-ees in Fortune 500 com-panies have found, while women make up nearly

50 percent of these com-panies, they represent just 7.5 percent of top earn-ers. Dissatisfaction with their income encourages some women to look for greener pastures.

Transitioning between jobs is common, but pro-fessionals can take cer-tain steps to ensure their transition works out for them and does not burn any bridges along they way.

* Have a defi nitive rea-son for leaving. It’s fool-ish to change jobs on a whim. Be clear about why you are leaving and whether problems can be remedied by speaking up or if leaving for another company really is the best

solution. Having fi rm rea-sons for your resignation will enable you to leave with more confi dence and conviction.

* Provide enough no-tice to the company. If you have been working in a particularly poor envi-ronment, it may be tempt-ing to run out the door even before your written resignation has fi nished printing. This may not bode well for future rec-ommendations and leave your name tarnished within the industry. In-stead, give ample notice and fi nd a mutually ac-ceptable window of time in which your position will be fi lled. While two weeks is standard, some

positions may require more or less time. It’s best not to drag your exit out too long though.

* Meet with your boss fi rst. Don’t let a boss fi nd out about your inten-tions to leave the com-pany through the work-place gossip mill. It is always more professional to keep plans to yourself and show your boss the respect of hearing about your decision to leave fi rst. Do so in person and not over the phone or via email.

* Continue to do your job to the best of your abilities. Giving notice is not a ticket to goofi ng off or participating in an of-fi ce vacation. Slacking off

damages good will and is a surefi re way to burn some bridges. Put in your best effort until the day you leave the company behind.

* Avoid making nega-tive comments. When dis-cussing your reasons for leaving, be diplomatic but honest. Similarly, do not talk poorly about your former job to your new employer. You may inad-vertently portray yourself as a disgruntled employ-ee. Furthermore, word travels fast within many industries, and a loose tongue may compromise future networking oppor-tunities.

* Maintain decorum even if it was not your

idea to leave. Being fi red or downsized can hurt, particularly when you thought you were doing a good job. Remain cool and always be profes-sional. How you conduct yourself when facing ad-versity could speak well to your future employers.

William Shakespeare may have said that a per-son is remembered for his entrances and exits, and this is particularly true in the workforce.

When it is time to leave an employment position for a new one, do so with grace and humility.

Osseowomenbiz7 24 1r

Documents

Transcript of Osseowomenbiz7 24 1r