I am thrilled to announce I won The National Title for my large wedding cake at The Cake Professionals Awards 2020.
I entered the awards because I thought it would be the best confidence boost not only for myself but for my newly hatched wedding cake business too. Little did I even think I’d win the National Award!
Here is the press release from The Cake Professionals
March 2020:
The winners of The Cake Professionals’2020 awards were announced at a ceremony in Berkshire on Monday,each receiving a trophy, national title and cash prize.
The evening bash which took place at the Reading FC Conference and Events venue, was hosted by Cherish Finden, chef and judge on Bake Off: The Professionals, and sponsored by Tate & Lyle® Sugars.
More than 150 cake professionals and their supporters, travelled from all over the UK to attend the awards, which are designed to celebrate the very best of the custom cake making industry in the UK.Entrants were from registered UK custom cake businesses and all cakes entered had been genuine commissions, and enjoyed by clients in the past year.
Co-founder of The Cake Professionals Phil Jensen said, “We have been blown away by the skill and hard work we’ve seen. Our judges had a tough time deciding on the winners of each category, but were all in agreement, that each entry featured the secret to making great cake – passion, something we have seen by the bucket-load throughout this year’s conference, and the awards process.”
Lindsay Ross travelled from Stranraer in South West Scotland to receive her prize for Sculpted Cake of the Year, and her entry was also crowned Cake Design of the Year. Ross walked away with £1500 in prize money for her sculpted cake of a weight lifter which was designed for her gym-loving client’s 40th birthday, and as part of her prize, will be heading to Spain later in the year to film with CakeFlix.
The crowned Cake of the Year 2020 fought off strong competition from the five other cake design category winners which included Emma Page’s buttercream creation, Deb Dargue’s small celebration cake design, fellow Scott, Kate Archer of Gorgeously Sweet and her large celebration cake, Nicola Bonney’s small wedding cake design and Bonita Elms’s large wedding cake.
Judge Yasmine Ziadlourad of Rosalind Miller Cakes said, “Running a cake business isn’t just about being able to make a great cake. A lot more goes into it and as a small cake business you have to wear many hats, from accountant, to marketing manager, to HR.
“We’ve seen some impressive knowledge and business skills in judging this category and have to commend all the entrants for making the brave decision to start a business in this highly competitive market.”
The awards followed The Cake Professionals day-long conference, now in its second year. The sold-out event welcomed more than 110 cake-making professionals to attend talks, intensive workshops, and panel discussions, as well as providing an ideal opportunity to meet and network with fellow cakers, and experts in the field. Themes included customer experience, SEO, and legal requirements for small businesses, and the all-important pricing debate. Intensives covered a range of subjects including cake show entries, dealing with complaints, intellectual property and marketing your own business.
International Stand Up Paddleboard racer, and motivational speaker, Dr Ginnie Betts inspired the audience by sharing her experiences in taking up a new physical challenge, and highlighted the importance of saying yes, having a go, and stepping out of our comfort zone.
Christine Jensen said, “What a day! The response we have had to The Cake Professionals conference and our inaugural awards scheme has been phenomenal. We are thrilled with how well the whole day has been received. More than that though, we are thrilled that Cake Makers from up and down the country have been able to connect, rediscover their cake mojo and celebrate the everyday genius that they use to make special moments across the UK that bit more special. We can’t wait for what next year will hold.”
The Cake Professionals network events on the subject of ‘Practical Pricing’ are to take place around the country from autumn 2020. For further details, please visit: https://www.thecakeprofessionals.com.
