Today we’d like to introduce you to Lania Andrade
Hi Lania, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I have loved pastries for as long as I can remember. Growing up in Honduras, I would help my mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother make box cake for special occasions— or sometimes just for fun. Any trip to the local bakeries was considered a treat for my eyes and taste buds. I was intrigued by the artistry of the display cakes.
Early on, I noticed the correlation between food and community as well as food and artistry.
After moving to the U.S, I took great comfort in cooking shows and competitions. My mom and I would often try to recreate foods we saw on TV.
When I became old enough, my allowance would be placed in a reloadable card that I used to buy foreign ingredients and foods to try.
At 13, I told my mom I wanted to become a chef. I will never forget her words, “If you want to be a chef, you need to work hard and become the best chef you can be.”
With that, I went into the culinary program at my High School for the next four years. I hold my mentor, Chef Jamey Hunt, incredibly dear to my heart as he worked hard to teach us all the skills we needed to learn with the little resources he had.
After graduating High School, I studied Baking & Pastry for two years at Johnson & Wales with some of the best instructors I could have asked for. I was hired as a “seasonal” pastry cook during my first semester of college by Chef Dallas Wynne. Well, seasonal turned into part-time, and part-time turned into full-time. Shortly, I became one of her Sous Chefs. Thanks to her I learned that there are no limits to what you can do, or who you can become if you work hard, never stop learning, and value your team.
I spent five years working in restaurants, while making desserts from home for family and friends until, in July of 2023, I decided to focus on building my brand and making custom desserts for people. Thanks to my loved ones, I have gathered the courage to work on my dream. With help from social media, I have been able to slowly grow and meet people in my community who share the same artistic goals and are willing to collaborate. Now, I work on custom sweets (cakes, cookies, dessert tables), occasionally attend farmer’s markets, and hold cake decorating workshops with local businesses like Artisan’s Playhouse. It tickles my heart to look back on the wide-eyed girl who once dreamed of being where I am today.
Making pastries for others to enjoy makes me incredibly happy.
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?
It has not been a smooth road at all. My toughest battle is often with myself and the uncertainties of having your own business. From the financial aspects to my own insecurities, there are days where I seriously reconsider my decision of leaving the “comfort” of a stable job. There are some weeks where I don’t have a single order. During those times, I try my best to look ahead and keep busy working on other aspects of the job like marketing and branding. I also receive an incredible amount of encouragement from the people I love. Most of the time, a slow week will come with a last minute order from a regular!
On my fourth month of dedicating myself full-time to the business, I decided to get a part-time job to alleviate some of my financial insecurities. I don’t see this talked about enough when you become an entrepreneur, but it’s okay to have a job if you can weave it within your schedule! I am extra lucky to have an employer who understands that my business is my priority. Making that decision was hard, but it has alleviated a lot of my personal financial stress.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Love, Grace Sweets is a love letter to pastries. It contains a fragment of my middle name (my great-grandmothers name), which I hold dear to me. Although we love all pastries, we specialize in custom cakes for all occasions. We pride ourselves in the slogan, “With Love, from Scratch.”
I have always been adamant about making as much of our products from scratch as possible, and thanks to my time spent in restaurants, I always strive for balance in flavor and sweetness. Just because it’s dessert, doesn’t mean it has to be incredibly sweet.
I also love when a customer asks for something outside of my comfort zone! My goal is to make their dream dessert come to life in look and in taste.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
As silly as it sounds, Manga is my literature of choice. A protagonist fighting for their dreams and coming out victorious against all odds will always inspire me to do my best every day. Though, my biggest inspiration will always be Rock Lee, whose motto is to be stronger than yesterday, “If I have to, I’ll be stronger than I was even a minute ago.”
Since I spend a lot of time in the kitchen, I often fill the silence with comedy Podcasts, YouTube commentary videos, or Spotify playlists. I try to play things that are lighthearted. I’ve come to find that media with a more serious tone will bring down my mood even if I’m not putting all my attention towards it.
Pinterest became my tool of choice when researching inspiration. I’m heavily inspired by Japanese food trends.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://cashdrop.com/love-grace-sweets-
- Instagram: Lovegracesweets
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@lovegracesweets?_t=8nYlXsUDy2x&_r=1
