According to a report, the sales value of manufactured bread, cakes and other bakery products in Malaysia in 2019 was RM3.03 billion. As a country that prides itself on good food, it isn’t surprising to know that the baking industry in Malaysia is fast-moving with an estimated total of many thousands of baked goods suppliers. These suppliers range from stand-alone bakeries to F&B outlets with their own bakery lines. The competitive nature of the food market did not deter Kek & Co. from hopping onto the bandwagon.
Before Satira Diana and Farah Melissa founded Kek & Co. back in 2015, they were rivals seeking out to find their own business partners. Fast-forward a few years later, they have amassed more than 115,000 followers on their Instagram account. Let’s find out all about Kek & Co., the challenges they face and their hopes for the future.
From Rivals to Partners
Before Satira and Farah were business partners, they were rivals. They only knew each other as solo bakers within the market.
Unfortunately for the two, their fathers had passed on around the same time. Coping with grief was rather difficult for Satira after the demise of her father. When she came to learn about the demise of Farah’s father, they caught up with each other and even exchanged cake orders to support one another.
Satira had long thought that doing her business alone was exhausting and her late father also supported the idea. She took some time scouting for a partner, but she couldn’t think of a better partner than Farah. They had a chat and - voila!- agreed to become business partners.
Signature Unicorn Cake
Kek & Co started out with the unicorn cake as their signature. Satira mentioned, "Unicorn cakes are actually a trend that died out in recent years. We revived the trend as it appealed to women and children."
The impressions one would get from Kek & Co would be colourful and Instagrammable custom cakes. Thus, the visual aesthetics of their products tend to be colourful and bright.
As their business revolves around customized orders, their customers can order other aesthetics besides the unicorn if they wish to do so.
"Unicorn cakes are actually a trend that died out in recent years. We revived the trend as it appealed to women and children."
Going Digital
Kek & Co first tried a hand with a physical shop last year. They set up a pop-up store in Publika to see how the physical store would fare. Their business performed well for the first few months but later on, business slowed down. When the business partners decided to go online, they discovered that they could save on a lot of aspects.
They shared, "We don't have to worry about direct customer service, rental and the staff now that we’re digital." According to the two, going digital allows them to focus on the business aspect of their bakery.
Treading the MCO
As more people stayed home during the MCO, there was a surge of home bakers and cooks. Kek & Co. suddenly found themselves with an abundance of competitors who sold their products at a cheaper price.
Satira said, "During hard times like these, it's important to go back to why we started and that is (for the love of) baking." They still offered customized cakes but at a lower price. Kek & Co. also brought out newer packages to entice their loyal followers.
Satira and Farah confessed that they faced a lot of hardships as female entrepreneurs. One of it pertains to women entrepreneurs being pushovers. They said, "When we approach corporate businesses, we get bullied if we don't speak up."
The duo experienced this in their separate businesses previously. However, they felt that working through this problem as partners proved to be better. Satira says: "We've decided that okay, we've gone through this before. Let's not bring it into our business together."
"When we approach corporate businesses, we get bullied if we don't speak up."
Future Plans For Kek & Co
Similarly to a number of businesses this year, Kek & Co have decided to go with the flow. When they first began , their only worry was having to deal with the lack of respect that local bakers would get. Now, they focus on having the remaining team employed and getting sales coming in each month.
"We are just trying to survive at this point, so we do what we can." Satira says. The business partners continuously add on their digital knowledge and find solutions so they can properly navigate their digital business.
Advice For Young Female Entrepreneurs
A word of advice from the duo for every up-and-coming female entrepreneur is that she should be prepared for an array of outcomes and sacrifice.
"Be mentally-prepared that there will be hurricanes and rainbows. You don't know what's coming."
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