chinook opening, changes, cherries and more

It's been about a year since my last post. It's been a busy year with the opening of your second location at Chinook Mall. The gals at Chinook especially Jessie have been wonderful and supportive. Additionally, the other merchants have been very supportive of our bakery often using us as their bakery of choice for celebrations. We are humbled by their generosity. So, a year has gone by and all I can say is that Calgarians continue to believe and support our efforts in creating a cupcake niche that at times seems impossible amongst many competitors. Anna and Kelly has left us to pursue greener pastures in Ontario, Morgan will be going back to school soon, Winnie is our newest pastry chef, Nora will be the new manager in Bow Valley, and Davis continues to run our bakery with true grit.
What have I learned over the past year? Well, Justina, myself and our wonderful staff believe that hard work, determination, honesty, and charity is the key to success. Stay true to your heart, be loyal to your supporters and be grateful everyday that you made a dollar the honest way will certainly help to carve a straight path to success.
On a personal note, Justina and I continue to scare, entertain and comfort our staff and patrons with our constant bickering behind and shamelessly not behind closed doors. Our defiance towards one another seems to be a part of the bakery's every day life and it does not appear to be losing any steam any time soon. We are gearing up for another location and with that comes more stress...I will go more into that in October.
We continue to create and re-create our cupcakes. Evolving is important and we try everyday to create a masterpiece that will be well received by all. This month is our blueberry cheesecake and I absolutely love it. Mean while we continue to create artistic many tiered cakes that once scared us to death. All of us here at Bliss continue to take on new projects no matter how unsurmountable it may seem. We know we will find a way to build it and surprisingly it always turns out. Watch out Cake Walk next year Bliss plans on being a force.
That is it for now as I pack away the last 40 pounds of fresh cherries picked by Monica, the kids, Dan and myself to bring back to Calgary. I am already thinking about what to make with these gems....if there is any left.
In the mean time, enjoy the rest of summer and Bliss will continue to make the several hundreds of cupcakes each day for each of you to enjoy.

imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

Just noticed that a company that already noted their recycling efforts years ago coincidentally reiterated their recycling efforts which look dangerously close to our website (that just launched). Coincidence? I don't think so. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. However, I want you to know that we've been doing this from the day we open. We realize that the landfills are shamelessly filled with cupcake containers. As a result, we thought long and hard about how to minimize our footprint. That is why we are providing options such as paper packaging for cupcakes, offering slight discount for people who re use their containers, use as many green products at our Bakery as possible and we really do recycle everyone of our paper products on a daily basis. Until commercial recycling is mandated, all of us at Bliss and Co will continue to recycle all of our paper products. We do this because we believe in it, not because we believe it will secure more clients. I love our home and we want to set an example that anyone can do the same. If Bliss and Co can do it why can't we all? Especially the big guns out there....you know who you are and you should be ashamed that on a daily basis you throw all of your packaging in the waste bins. That includes Starbucks!

It's getting Hot in Here

Wheww, this was a hot week at Bliss and CO. The temperatures were soaring at the mid 20's and with us baking all day, we were fairly uncomfortable. However, we persevered and managed to make it through the week. Stampede is usually a slow week, but compared to last year it was a raging success. Our smores, lemon meringue and strawberry shortcake cupcakes sold like hotcakes, and we plan on doing it again. We finalized our buttercream and cupcake feature, which will be featured next week! Competition is getting quite tight and our new store will be an exciting and interesting twist to the cupcake market. Rest assured Bliss and Co will not just stop there. We are determined to make sure that there is no market monopoly and that competition is alive and well in Calgary, making us forever motivated to produce the best cupcakes with unwavering excellent customer service. In my humble opinion, I believe we are already there and our continued expansion will not affect our devotion and dedication to you or our products. I need to remember that slow and steady wins the race. Thank goodness my sister is level headed. The competition in me sometimes makes me absolutely crazy.

So Calgary, when you are sick of pancakes and syrup, come by for a cupcake indulgence. Better yet, look out for our cupcake gals roaming your area giving away stampede cupcakes while marketing our location!

New staff, Migraines, hygiene, and Lemons....

Monica, our new employee will be managing the Chinook store started today. Overwhelmed to say the least. I have known her all my life and I do believe that this is the first time I saw her a little worried. She was busy being trained by Josilyn our Head baker and my Sister on how to run the a retail front, control costs, wastage, manage staff and learn how we bake from scratch. So how did the day end? She said "bye, see you tomorrow". Good Sign, although today is only Tuesday. She has not experienced our busy busy days. Good Luck and God Speed Monica!

So, how do you feel about lemons? During the summer all I can think about are berries, lemons and the tropics. Since it is a pipe dream to get away to Hawaii, then let's bring Hawaii to Calgary. Get ready for the best lemon meringue your taste buds will ever experience. I made a silky smooth filling to top a buttery crunchy crust, piled high with soft fluffy meringue. I bet you could eat one right now. I know it is absolute bliss since I don't even like lemons and couldn't stop licking my spoon.

Our Pastry chef kelly is working on our mango buttercream to top our mystery cupcake. Working with fresh puree is arduous, but well worth it. Since nothing but the best comes from Bliss, we will sacrifice many mangos (in my belly) until we get it just right.

Funny thing, our Buttercream Queen La Laine was a mess! She came to work in glasses, hair piled on her head like a mad hatter, wearing a sweatshirt and bloodshot eyes. I said to her Whoaaa, what happened to you? You look like hell. She said it's been a rough week. I can't even bathe my entire body at the same time. I only have time to do my hair one day, my body the next. Even at that, I haven't showered in 3 days. I had a heart attack and thought to myself don't ask any more questions and just laughed out Loud. I did tell her to stay away from the front and don't walk by any of our customers! She is funny and a real great asset to have in our store. As for Josilyn she was her delightful self, describing her magic sponge cleaning experience all the while preparing our cupcakes like a true professional. As for Kelly, she was standing on a step stool whisking away at 3-4 litres of pastry cream. I should have taken a picture, too funny for words. Kelly needs to go the gym, she was slightly out of breath. However, Megan our pastry student came back from holidays and was quiet as a mouse. Not like her, she is usually full of pepper and spice. However, today I barely knew she was at the bakery. Migraine. Need I say more?

All in all, fun day with a full staff at Bliss. Thank goodness we can all work in tight spaces. It truly is like a maze, and we all get along....so far. I love my sister, my husband, my two babies and life in general. It really is good to be able to capture moments in your life that make you smile. This was one of those days.

No time for anything let alone BAKE

Monday July 5, 2010

So I am at the bakery painting the walls of Bliss and CO. all the while thinking "I can't wait for the day when this is a thing of the past and I'm sitting at my desk chatting, laughing, worrying only about what to make for dinner!".

So this week is going to be rainy, we are gearing up for BLiss and Co cupcake of the month. I swear I taste blueberries, but it is not the season. I'm thinking tropical and I'm thinking refreshing. For the remainder of the week my awesome team will create a cupcake buttercream combination that will tantalize and keep you coming back for more. Our customers deserve nothing but the best and our plan at Bliss is to create new experiences and make their visit to our bakery a memorable one. I once heard a customer say as she walked out with her perfect red velvet "mmmm...I like it here" and the door slowly closed behind her. Isn't that wonderful? No one should every leave our bakery feeling discontent. So, I apologize in advance if Bliss every left a bad taste in your mouth. We don't mean it and given the opportunity we will make it up to you. However, I am certainly not a pushover. Having said that I've been instructed to stay away from any customer complaints. That is where my gentle sister comes in ...bless her little heart!

On a personal note, my sister and I seem to be talking again. There is something about the bond between sisters that nothing can break. She is my good side, a softer side that makes me forgive, give in and always forget. I wouldn't do this with anyone else. Although I must admit there are moments when I wish this was just a bad memory. My mother is also gracious enough to assist us financially with our new opening in Chinook Mall. Really, you have no idea the cost of this endeavor. Cross your fingers this will be the one to help Bliss make it's mark. BLiss and Co. will be a household name in Calgary come hell or high water!

Good nite

Do I really know what I am doing?

So here it goes, my first attempt at blogging......

Canada day was a wonderful celebration with family with the exception of my my sister who decided to forego the celebrations and work like a demon to get our website up and running. As we drove through the city I realized the great number of people strolling through downtown calgary for Canada Day festivities. What is the first thing that went through my mind?.....Darn, should have opened for business, friday is going to be slow. As I kicked myself repeatedly in the car I looked up at Ray and Todd and realized it's worth it. So, I stopped the kicking, relaxed, and tried to enjoy the day.

As my sister worked ferverously on the website I thought to myself, , put your money where your mouth is. To be exact, all the world is apparently into twittering, facebook and blogging. Since I don't have a clue how to twitter or use facebook I thought I would put my thoughts down on my own blog. A chance to describe the daily challenges of running a bakery with your sister while trying to find some balance with family, friends, pets, work and your sanity. Easier said than done, but I believe, I believe, I believe....