A Sweeter World with Zainab Illyas

Zainab Illyas is an artist when it comes to desserts. Her specialty is French macarons, and she creates beautiful, expertly crafted custom treats. She calls her cafes “community cafes” and she brings that notion to life in her business, building relationships and supporting her community. As a women-owned business, hers could have been shut down by COVID. But she flourished. So what did she do to ensure that her brick-and-mortar business continued to succeed during the pandemic? Listen in today for this different entrepreneurial perspective. 

From Zai’s perspective as a brick and mortar business owner, she shares:

How she got into baking, starting in her childhood home in Sri Lanka

Why she transitioned into baking French macarons

The importance of passion to keep you moving forward

Her switch from home baking to opening her first shop

The ins and outs of building a business while raising children

We also talk about how social media fits into a brick and mortar business:

Forming a team with her husband and why you need a team to build a business

Making use of existing relationships to support building the business

How relationships became a pillar in her business and how she created that atmosphere

Her philosophy of giving support to local contractors

What changed when she opened a second location of the café. 

Zai discusses how things changed for the business during COVID. Despite the pandemic, she launched a new location in September 2020. She shares how she made it work. 

Zai shares that waiting for the “perfect time” can be a mistake. 

What’s involved in scaling the business and training people for growth? 

Moving from a one-person hobby to where she is now, with two locations and ready to open a third

How a successful opening taught her that she needed to find help

The hardest part about training people to bake her recipes

The importance of a growth mindset

How she created the systems so the business would run smoothly

The difference between training in-person vs online

We also dive into more about her custom products: 

How art plays a role in her baking

Learning through trial and error and why it’s important to learn from your mistakes

The process for adding more offerings to the menu

Her brilliant idea for using macaron shells that weren’t perfect

The power of creativity and resourcefulness when you’re an entrepreneur

Adapting to current trends and customers’ needs and how that can increase your business

We wrap up talking about Zai’s social media presence and her current strategy on different platforms, especially Tik Tok. More than anything, she has fun with it! It’s a great way to express yourself and connect with people. 

In the end, you need to enjoy your work for it to succeed. 

Links from Today’s Episode:

Zai’s Website

Instagram of Zai

Zai’s Facebook

TikTok of Zai