“We were very careful to follow social distancing guidelines. We would place our bag of goodies on the doorstep, ring the bell, then step back and wait for the door to open. Customers were so excited to receive their delivery and many left us lovely notes and waved to us from their window!”
The volume of orders rose at a meteoric rate, from 30 deliveries in week one to 160 in week four. Jemma and Andy found themselves having to work for up to 70 hours a week, including servicing deliveries as far afield as Biggleswade and Stevenage. Recognising that this level of effort was unsustainable, they changed their business model.
“We restricted deliveries to Letchworth, Hitchin and Baldock,” said Jemma, “and offered a collection service as an alternative for customers living outside the area. It didn’t affect the number of orders coming in, but at least we weren’t having to travel extensively to deliver our cakes.
“We also set up a website. We had always wanted one, but our worries had held us back. Lockdown made the decision for us; we had no option but to get on with it. And it turned out to be one of the best moves we’ve made.”
Jemma was able to call upon the expertise and support of friend and IT guru Fabio Vincenti, who co-owns Fabio’s Gelato. With telephone support from Fabio, Andy set up The Cakey Lady website, complete with its own ordering system for local deliveries and collection. Jemma and Andy quickly got the hang of it and suddenly the pressure was off: Jemma could at last concentrate on baking cakes and promoting the business.
“We used Facebook and Instagram to let customers know which cakes were available, the order deadlines and the delivery and collection arrangements,” said Jemma. “We simply couldn’t have managed without social media.”
