Episode 039: Tessa Sam | Sweet Bake Shop | Theory After Hours | The Theory Hardware Podcast

Theory After Hours: The Theory Hardware Podcast

I’m the baker and dessert enthusiast behind Sweet Bake Shop. Over the past seven years, I’ve grown my company from a blog, to baking for customers from my downtown Vancouver apartment, to a bakery, to pop-up shops, to brand partnerships and a baking book – which you can now find in all major bookstores and online – yay!

Here, you’ll find recipes, tutorials and blog posts on things I’m passionate about – food, business, travel…the list goes on! My goal is to share with you as much as possible and perhaps even lend a hand up to those who aspire to follow their sugar-coated dreams.RECIPES

Let’s go back…

In my early twenties, I graduated from broadcasting school and landed a job as a morning radio co-host. I was thrilled to be getting paid to talk, but the shiny newness of my job eventually wore off and I became increasingly unhappy and bored – so I left. I went back to my job as a waitress and additionally, picked up some part-time work at a bakery. It was there, surrounded by bowls of buttercream, covered in flour and working long, unglamorous hours, that something clicked: This was my happy place. Watching customers eyes light up when talking about or eating their favourite dessert was magical – good food has such a way of doing that – and that was something that I knew I wanted to be part of.

A few years later, I attended the Peggy Porschen Academy in London, UK – a dream of mine for years – to really hone my skills in cookie decorating and specialty cake design. In 2014, I opened Sweet Bake Shop, a boutique bakery just a few blocks from my apartment, and I couldn’t have been more excited. The first few months were a blur of cake crumbs and little sleep. On more than one occasion, I found myself spending the night in my shop, napping on a piece of flattened cardboard, so that I could keep an eye on cake layers baking in the oven. Oh, the glamorous life of a new business owner!

Just shy of my shop’s first birthday, I was contacted by my now-editor at Penguin Random House about a potential baking book deal and I knew I had to make a decision – keep my new business open or take the opportunity to write the baking book I had always wanted to write (there was no way I could juggle both). I really wanted to write a book but I’d heard from friends who had recently published their books that the writing process consumes your life. The trouble was, my life was currently consumed by my business. It was an incredibly tough decision to have to make. That summer, I closed the pink doors to my shop and said farewell, temporarily, to our beloved customers…and hello to the publishing world.

And so here we are – two and a half years later. My company has evolved so much since closing my shop and while I do miss baking for customers every day, I really love where things are going. My book is about to hit shelves everywhere (pinch me!) and I can’t wait to share all of my recipes with you! This sugary world that brings so much joy to many is where I’m meant to be and I’m so happy that I’m able to share my version of it with you. Thanks for stopping by!