Young Eastern Cape-based pastry chef Mihlali Quntana is well on her way to creating and leaving a legacy for future generations after establishing a bakery in her hometown with her siblings.
While under the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown, Quntana decided to bake cakes and sell them in KwaDwesi, in Gqeberha. At the time, the 27-year-old had a full-time job. Sustained growth saw Quntana quit her job in May last year to work full-time at Bake It Perfect.
“After working for various establishments across the country, I came to a point where jobs were scarce and I just decided to start baking from home and selling birthday cakes and cupcakes to people. This was all after the Covid-19 [pandemic] and things were not back to normal. I was making extra cash and that’s how Bake It Perfect started,” she said.
Her business showed signs of growth, which led her to teach her three siblings how to bake so they could assist with the business.
“When I started the business, I wanted to develop a family business. Now I am very comfortable with them [siblings] taking orders,” she said.
Today, the four siblings are employed by Bake It Perfect with an additional four staff members.
Determined to broaden its product range, Bake It Perfect has expanded its product range to producing bread, bread rolls, pies, swiss rolls, muffins, pastries and tarts.
While the journey has not been easy, she is glad to have taken the plunge.
“I have gone through some hardship with Bake It Perfect. I am grateful for the places I have worked at because they gave me the strength that I have to push and be independent,” she said.
Quntana has previously worked at a game reserve, a meat bistro, a fine dining restaurant and as a lecturer.
The Small Enterprise Finance Agency’s (Sefa) Township and Rural Entrepreneurship Programme (TREP) gave Bake It Perfect a R300 000 loan last year.
This allowed the business to purchase equipment such as ovens, bun dividers, mixers, approvers and fridges.
The focus of TREP was to create a platform that provides business support infrastructure and a regulatory environment that enables entrepreneurs to thrive.
“The entire shop is here because of the loan,” she said, adding that while the application had been a long process, “it was very much worth it”.
“We would not have Bake It Perfect if it was not for Sefa,” she said.
She encouraged everyone with a budding business to approach the entities of government such as Sefa for assistance
*This story first appeared in Vuk’uzenzele.
