Authentic Portuguese Pastries - A Portuguesa Bakery
Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Maria De Sousa, owner of A Portuguesa Bakery, located in Waterloo, ON, Canada.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
My business is a Portuguesa Bakery, and we’re bringing a taste of Portugal and Brazil to Kitchener-Waterloo Region. Our customers range from locals who come every market day for bread and pastries to visitors coming from many parts of Ontario and even from the US looking for traditional and tasty food.
Tell us about yourself
I'm a very curious and optimistic person, and I love cooking and baking. Although the idea of opening a small family-owned bakery has been around for the past ten years, in 2020, when COVID-19 hit, we actually started the business. What motivates me to keep going is my business's support from the local community. That shows me I'm stepping in the right direction. I want to grow a local, solid, trusted business.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
My greatest accomplishment as a business owner is the trust I’ve been able to earn from my customers for the past year and a half. That’s priceless.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
The hardest thing to me is all the responsibility involved in the process of opening, maintaining, and growing a business. It can sometimes be demanding, especially for small companies. Still, all this multitasking brings great knowledge and skills that will help mature our confidence and autonomy as entrepreneurs.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Do your research- get to know your competitors and challenge yourself to provide something unique that they're not offering.
- Get to know your clients- talk to them, learn their names, ask for suggestions or their opinion about your products, and let them know they matter.
- Don't devalue your product- customers don't mind paying the price they pay, as long as they get the quality they are expecting.
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
No matter how much you grow, never forget the most important component of your business: People. Take good care of them.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.aportuguesabakery.ca/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/A-Portuguesa-Bakery-104133584731075
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aportuguesabakery/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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