Long-standing cake and catering business founder launches popular cake shed at the end of her driveway
The founder of a long-standing cake and catering business has launched a cake shed at the end of her driveway in Northampton, which has already proved a roaring success.
Homemade By Victoria offers fresh and homemade private catering services for all customers’ needs – including afternoon teas, buffets, canapes and cakes for weddings, parties and any social gatherings.
The business was founded by Victoria Austin in January 2017, who previously worked as a chef and found it difficult to achieve the work-life balance she desired in her former role.
The 15-hour days no longer suited her and having just been named ‘young chef of the year’, this gave Victoria the confidence to set something up of her own – and Homemade By Victoria was born.
Homemade By Victoria launched The Cake Shed at 144 Park Lane in Duston for the first time on February 6. It opened at 8am loaded with brownies, cake tubs, old school cake, lemon drizzle, cakesicles and cookie pies.
The instructions are inside the shed door, but all customers have to do is pick their goodies and then either place cash in the tin or scan the QR code to make a bank payment. They then bolt the gate back up and enjoy their purchases.
The Cake Shed sold out by 11am on the first day and even after it was restocked, it sold out again before 3pm.
When asked why now was the right time to add this to her offering, Victoria told the Chronicle & Echo: “I have a loyal customer base but new customers might not want to spend lots on a birthday cake. This way they can spend a couple of pounds and get low quantities without going to the supermarket.”
Having seen cake sheds take off on social media, Victoria decided to launch the first in Duston and it took just a week to bring this project to life.
“I was a bit skeptical as I didn’t know how trustworthy people would be, but everyone tipped me from what I counted,” said Victoria. “There’s a CCTV camera in the shed and I could see people adding up the totals.
“A lot of my neighbours said The Cake Shed had gone mental and my friends that don’t even live in Duston have heard about it.
“Not everyone has a reason to buy a big cake and this gives them the chance to try things they wouldn’t normally in lower quantities.”
The Cake Shed will be open every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 8am until it sells out, and Victoria is working hard to ensure it remains in stock for as long as possible over the weekend.
When asked her hopes for the future of Homemade by Victoria, the founder said: “Ideally I want to get an ice cream van to start a dessert shop on wheels, to pop-up at markets and venues.
“The Cake Shed was a cheaper way to start that avenue and to see the vibe, so maybe that will happen in the next couple of years.”