Exquisite Handmade Cakes

A lifetime lover of the baked treat, Viv Parry’s cake company rivals bland supermarket offerings. After 5 years of business, ‘Exquisite Handmade Cakes’ employs 21 people, providing large events such as the Great Yorkshire Show and organisations such as the University of Leeds with a range of hand finished cakes and  tray bakes, and individually wrapped flapjacks and muffins.

Disappointed with production line cakes which sacrifice taste and quality ingredients for low cost and a long shelf life, Viv Parry set out to establish her own cake company in 2004. Over five years later, she now owns a successful business with a turnover of more than £950 000.

Growing steadily year on year, ‘Exquisite Handmade Cakes’ received a £4000 grant from the Business Growth Fund so they could cope with the high demand for their products. They put it towards new equipment to enable them to react to the growing demand for wrapped products. As a result of this expansion, they now employ two more people from the local area.

Viv Parry said. “I believe that to drive a business forward you need to keep a close eye on customer’s needs. You need to do your research and invest in what fits in with the current market in order to grow in a controlled way. We are always on the lookout for new and exciting ideas which will keep our client base happy and we like to take advantage of the resources available to us. Being based outside of the city centre in the LS4 area is a real advantage for our suppliers and employees as it means they don’t have to go through the city to get to us.”