Hello, fabulouses, and welcome back to the blog!
In celebration of this wonderful Friday, I want to share with y’all a sweet interview with the owner of my favorite, local cupcake shop–Tammy Scott of Cakes In a Cup! Not only is Tammy a keen business woman with a sweet tooth, but she is also full of inspiration and motivation! From horseback riding to baking cupcakes, Tammy champions it all! Read more to find out how*wink*
VIP: What inspired you to step in and buy Cakes in a Cup?
Tammy: [My] mom and I always wanted to do something like this together. We both are very creative and love design. We thought we would open an interior decorating store together; however, when I went to Europe this past summer, I really fell in love with the food and culture. We were customers of Cakes In a Cup when the previous woman owned it, and shortly after we got back from Europe, we found out that the owner was going to be selling it. I have always loved to bake since I was young, so when the opportunity came for me to take up owning a cupcake shop…I fell in love all over again. The job I had prior to the cupcake shop (Tammy worked in the medical and technology field) kept me very busy with travels, which kept me away from my family. So, being able to work alongside my family here [at Cakes in a Cup] is a nice change of pace.
VIP: When you were younger, I know you were big into horseback riding and then ended up becoming a World Champion. Tell me a little bit about that.
Tammy: Well, I started when I was about five. My mom tells all of this much better than I do–
Tammy’s mother: Awh! That’s not true. You tell it quite well.
Tammy: We were living in Connecticut at the time, and I took riding lessons from a local barn. My father did Western riding and was with one of the top trainers in the world, who lived in Maryland. So, when I was ten, I graduated after finally getting a good foundation on horseback riding. I also got my first reigning horse at that time….We hauled from Connecticut to Maryland about every weekend for training, and if we were not going to Maryland for training, we were on the road to a show in places like Ohio and Florida.
After my horseback riding career took over, I had to be taken out of conventional school and homeschooled so that I could, of course, get my education while following my passion at the time. One of my parents’ big rules was that I had to make honors in order to ride. So, when I was not training or competing, I was studying and doing homework. It was a lot of hard work, but it definitely paid off. Juggling it all was a huge, huge commitment, but what I learned from being on the road to my everyday life at the time really helped me with my perspective of running a business. It gave me a lot of confidence as well….I was number one in the world in 1996, and then I went back two years ago (after a long break from horseback riding) to make the top five in the world standings. My dad passed away around that time, and I always said that I was riding for him, so it was sort of a “tribute” to him. My husband did the same thing my parents did when I was younger and drove me all over the country for training and competitions….So, I started with horseback riding, and now I am baking cupcakes!
VIP: What is one piece of advice that you can give to others about finding their passion?
Tammy: I really love what my pastor said the other morning, “Strive for excellence, not perfection.” When we strive for perfection, we are really giving ourselves false expectations that could harm our judgment, and I think that is a very powerful message. So many times, we worry about being “perfect” when we should worry about being “excellent” instead. His words have really helped me with this whole process because there are going to be failures and there are going to be successes, so I strive for excellence instead of worrying myself to death about unreachable perfection….We rely a lot on faith, and I believe, if you have your priorities straight that things will sort of fall into place. That does not mean that hard work and stress will not come along with it, but it does mean that the ride to excellence will be a bit smoother. I also believe that if you strive for excellence over perfection, there are no true “failures” because each “failure” is a learning experience that takes you one step closer to the level of success you want to reach….You live and learn, and that is partially what makes life so enjoyable. If we weren’t learning something new everyday, life would not be as exciting.
Flavors of March:
Green Tea & Honey
Irish Cream
Salted Caramel Mocha
Mint Chocolate
Pistachio
Gluten-Free Flavor Schedule:
Week of March 2nd
Chocolate Lava, Chocolate Lava Cheesecake,
Irish Cream & Mint Chocolate
Week of March 9th
Chocolate Lava, Chocolate Lava Cheesecake, Pistachio & Vanilla on Vanilla
Week of March 16th
Chocolate Lava, Chocolate Lava Cheesecake, Salted Caramel Mocha & Wedding
Week of March 23rd-31st
Chocolate Lava, Chocolate Lava Cheesecake, Green Tea & Honey, & Chocolate on Vanilla
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