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There will be a new food truck hitting the streets of Williamsburg and surrounding areas soon. Keep your eyes out for Tabbycakes Bakes LLC.
Tabbycakes is the brain child of Williamsburg native Tabitha Clowson, who is combining her love of sugar and baking into a new, tasty food truck.
"I'm just a girl from Williamsburg with a passion for sugar. I've had a sweet tooth for as long as I can remember," Clowson said.
Clowson grew up in Williamsburg and went to Penn State. The name for her business came from her nickname in high school "Tabbycakes" because according to her classmates, she was always baking something.
"My mom and grandmothers let me lick the spoon when baking and my dad let me eat cake batter as a snack," Clowson said. "This blossomed into helping my Gram bake and volunteering to do every family member's birthday cake and every dessert for holidays. It became a passion and I started experimenting with flavors and textures," she said.
Clowson also noted that shows like "Cupcake Wars" and "Cake Boss" were constantly on her TV.
"Over the years, I found my own personal style of baking, and I have worked extremely hard over the years at other places. I finally took a chance on myself and my love of baking."
So why a food truck?
"I have always dreamed of baking full time," Clowson said. "I had an opportunity to have a food trailer made custom for Tabbycakes' needs and I took it. I am hoping it will help me expand my customer base and allow me the freedom to create all over the place."
The menu will include Clowson's own personal favorite thing to bake – homemade poptarts.
"Something about mixing the dough, making the jam, putting them together and decorating them is very calming to me," Clowson said.
Clowson will have a website that will feature a few items each week for pick-up or shipping. She wants to have some specialty boxes – such as an Easter Treat Box and a Nostalgic Little Debbie Box.
For goals for the business, Clowson, "would love to run Tabbycakes full time." Besides that, she wants to "share my love and passion and hopefully make people smile doing so. I like to bring nostalgic flavors and ideas from the past and put a new twist on them. Seeing people light up and get that sense of childlike wonder when they see Tabbycakes makes me feel accomplished. It's nice to add a little sparkle/sprinkle wherever I can."
Coming from a community of business owners and acquaintances, Clowson said she has gotten a lot of great advice from other small businesses in the area - items such as "stay organized," "maintain a personal touch," and "find your niche" come first to her mind, but the one that really stuck was "build a strong team."
To Clowson, a business is more than just an idea. It has been a lot of hard work, late nights, and early mornings.
For those looking to start their own small business, Clowson said, "I'd tell them to start now, don't wait for the perfect opportunity or right time. If you are passionate about something, start doing the research and work now. Begin building your team and the rest will fall into place."
Tabbycakes Bakes will also be participating in many festivals, fairs and markets as possible. For more information, contact the website and social media.
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