Today we’d like to introduce you to Raquel Figueroa and Christian Rosario.
Raquel and Christian, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’ve been baking rum cake for over ten years for my friends and family. I’m usually the one who brings dessert to any celebration, but this year things were different because of the pandemic. For Father’s day, my family wasn’t able to get together, and I wanted to find a way to make a mini version to give him since it was our tradition. We started doing research, and after finding the perfect personal-sized jar, we knew we were onto something. We both have graphic design backgrounds, so we created our branding and launched the company one month later. We do everything ourselves from the baking to the packaging, to delivering.
Our mission was to get Bang Bang in the hands of anyone who had something to celebrate during quarantine, and let’s keep it real… we all needed something sweet and boozy to get by. We bake fresh cakes every week and make deliveries every Saturday, and are planning on expanding to make our cakes available any day of the week plus offer nationwide shipping. 2020 has been challenging in many ways, but we’re so proud of our small company that was born to bring treats to people’s doors when they need it the most.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We’re both graphic designers and have never worked in the food industry before, so besides making the cake itself, we had NO CLUE where to start. We had to figure out everything from the right packaging, to the laws involved with selling food products, to how to run an e-commerce website. This became our obsession and we spent every spare minute researching and testing the product. Although this is a recipe I’ve made plenty of times before, we still had weeks of trial and error baking at a larger scale and making it fit perfectly in the individual-sized jars. We still have a lot to learn, but this has been the most exciting challenge we’ve ever accepted.
Please tell us about Bang Bang Bakehouse.
Bang Bang is known for making boozy desserts, and we specialize in rum cake. We offer rum cakes in a jar and bite-sized rum cake balls. The cake is layered with our oven-toasted pecan crumbles which adds a crunchy texture to the moist cake. We’ve received amazing feedback from customers who love the cake and continue to order for themselves and as gifts. We tested different varieties of the cake and worked really hard on our branding, so we’re very proud of the final product.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Raquel – I spent a lot of time with my aunt Margie growing up, she took care of me while my parents were at work. We watched FRIENDS and Clueless together about 100 times, and one of her hobbies was baking. I was her little helper, and we’d make everything from cupcakes to chocolate candies and even homemade rice krispie treats. It’s because of her making it fun that I’ve always had a thing for baking (and I still watch Clueless repeatedly.)
Christian – I was born and raised in Puerto Rico, and my favorite childhood memories are going to the beaches on the west coast of the island for summer vacation with my family.
Pricing:
- Individual rum cake jars – $10
- Rum cake balls (6 pack) – $7
- Rum cake jars “Party Pack” (6 jars) – $54
- Rum cake balls “Party Pack” (24 balls) – $25
Contact Info:
- Website: www.bangbangbakehouse.com
- Email: bangbangbakehouse@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bangbangbakehouse/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bangbangbakehouse/
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