While many students wrap up their nights by studying and doing homework, senior Anna Bozarth can be found in her kitchen measuring ingredients, mixing batter and piping designs for her next order.
“There’s been so many times when I’ve stayed up until 2 a.m. baking, decorating and cleaning up the kitchen,” Bozarth said.
Bozarth launched a baking business, Made by Anna, during her junior year after her mother posted a photo of one of her cakes online.
“My mom’s friend saw on Facebook that I was decorating cakes because [my mom] posted a picture of one of my cakes,” said Bozarth. “She was like, ‘Do you think I could buy one for my daughter’s birthday?’”
Bozarth was very nervous before completing her first order because she wanted it to be perfect for the customer, she said.
“I was just worried I was gonna mess it up or the customer wouldn’t like it … because at that point, I hadn’t been decorating cakes for that long, so I didn’t know if I had the ability to do it,” said Bozarth. “But [the order] ended up being good, and the [customer] really liked it.”
Bozarth started Made by Anna as a hobby and a way to make money, but never expected it to grow into an official business, she said.
“Each different order kind of grew the business,” said Bozarth. “Different people asked for different types of cakes, and I was like, ‘Oh, I can make that.’ And then one person asked, ‘Oh, can you make cupcakes?’ … Every time someone started to ask for something, that’s when I was like, ‘Oh yeah, why not?’”
Bozarth sometimes doubts her abilities, especially when customers request orders that require her to use techniques she has never tried before, she said.
“I was using fondant to make a [racetrack] border,” said Bozarth. “And I don’t really use fondant, so leading up to that, I was kind of nervous because I didn’t know how it would turn out just because I don’t have that much experience with using that stuff. But it ended up being good, and I’m happy with how it turned out.”
According to Anna Bozarth’s mother, Terah Bozarth, her daughter runs the business entirely on her own, from shopping for ingredients to cleaning up the kitchen after each order.
According to Anna Bozarth, she once had to go to the store six days in a row to pick up ingredients.
“At the beginning, it was definitely harder to get into a rhythm,” said Anna Bozarth. “Now, I know exactly what I need to do, the steps I need to do and that I need to plan ahead.”
“I normally try to go to the store a day or two ahead … and then I make the cakes the day before I decorate them, and I either decorate them the day of or the night before to try to make [the cakes] as fresh as possible,” Anna Bozarth said.
According to Gina DeBoni, who has ordered from Made by Anna, the first dessert she ever tried that Anna Bozarth made was a chocolate peanut butter cupcake from a party her daughter went to.
“My daughter brought [the cupcake] home, and it was the best thing I ever had,” said DeBoni. “I was like, ‘I need to order.’”
Anna Bozarth’s ability to create and run a business from scratch makes her a role model in the community and sets her apart from her peers, DeBoni said.
“If this is how she’s starting out, whatever she does, whether it’s in culinary arts or anything else that she pursues, it’s clear that she has direction,” said DeBoni. “She has drive. She has innovation and creativity. I think that’ll take her far in life.”
According to Anna Bozarth, she plans on taking orders during breaks from college and wants to establish a more official side business in the future.
“[Hearing positive feedback from customers] definitely helped my confidence with the business and made me want to keep doing it, knowing that the people [who] were getting the cakes and cupcakes liked them,” Anna Bozarth said.