I Quit My Financial Advisory Job For a Cake Business, Says Damilola Odutayo
By ANGEL JAMES
The incessant industrial strike is a phenomenon that has remained with Nigeria and has become another word to define the country. Of the entire sectors of the nation’s economy, two sectors, the educational and the health sectors are today stigmatised for this. These sectors require huge capital outlay but the allocation to them has been meager compare to their needs, and the only strategy favoured by the operators to get attention for more funding is by way of strike actions.
Strike periods, especially in the educational sector, means different thing to many. While parents spend a lot to keep their wards at home during such periods, some wards see it as a period for familiarisation tour. But to those that are interested in making more out of life, it is a time for reflection and self-development.
For the soft-spoken Damilola Odutayo, a defining period of her life was the unending strike actions when she was at Lagos State University (LASU) during her undergraduate days. School had closed down and everyone was forced home. While others had taken time to frolic, Damilola saw the strike period as an opportunity to develop her passion.
Damilola, like all ladies, enjoys eating cake and she always has been intrigued about how flour, water, and sugar are mixed to give a refreshment that a lot go after. For Damilola “the way people shake their head after eating a piece of nicely baked cake prompted a passion in me”, and” the fact that one can prepare it just for the family and especially the children made an impression on me”.
As fate would have it again, there was another strike in 2014 and the students were to go home. This was perfect timing for Damilola. Gathering N100,000 which is a lot to an undergraduate, she let herself into her passion and decided to know more about baking.
Six years later, Damilola is making a dream out of her passion. Today, Damilola Adegboyega Odutayo is the CEO of DCYUMMYCAKES, servicing clients built across the federation.
Damilola, a graduate of Business Administration from Lagos State University, who was formerly working as a Financial Advisor, now runs a successful cake business from her home, inspired by a beautiful cake gotten for her sister. She became curious how it was made so beautifully and picked interest in cake baking which motivated her to take a step into the confectionery industry.
“Life of a cake business is not for everyone, it has demands and pressure, it is a lot more than just rolling out icing, it is truly something to be proud of because it brings joy and smile to so many people, I love my job” she proudly speaks.
Damilola previously worked with an Asset Management Company but was too challenging for her combining work with baking. Trust Lagos with the traffic gridlock that could keep one on the road for several hours, the mother of one, was always returning home late and will still have to bake in the night to meet demands from clients.
“I had to resign and focus on what I love to do. I resigned in 2018 because even my worst day as a cake decorator in my own business is better than the best day in my job as a Financial Advisor. I have had no regret quitting, it’s the best decision I have made”, said soft-spoken Damilola.
She learned baking during the long strike in her undergraduate days 2014 and today, she is happy she did.
“It cost me so much to start, in 2014 considering I didn’t have a paying job I paid one hundred thousand nairas just for beginner’s class, a course that runs for 2-3months. It cost time, money, emotions because there were days when I wasn’t getting it right, but I was determined and focused, I used my personal savings, parents, siblings, church, and friends also supported”
According to the caterer, all cakes are freshly baked with no preservatives using only the finest of ingredients to ensure an exceptional flavour and paying attention to customer’s details, complaints, and needs. Her cakes are delivered safely and she believes that the best quality of cake doesn’t come at high tag prices.
The entrepreneur states that there are a lot of people doing the same job but 90 per cent of her jobs are based on referral by people who are happy with the taste of her cakes which is evidence of future success.
In her words “Sometimes word of the mouth isn’t enough, experience also makes the difference”.
She targets people who have something to celebrate, and who will enjoy the simplicity that she brings into what she does.
While Damilola is creative with designs, she is also flexible, allowing the clients to decide their preferred designs. “My customers also send designs for me to replicate, and the quality of what I give has made me stand out. I try to make sure that all cakes that go out of my bakery are the best and this has brought more contracts to me”
Odutayo says that the confectionery industry is very large but she is focused on giving it her best. It has never been bad for her but instead, it gets better.
She says that the cake business is capital intensive and so, she is open to investors and banks’ assists.
Bad roads, reckless drivers while going for delivery and the refusal of banks to assist with credits are the challenges she faces but it has been a 97 percent success rate. She relies heavily on social media for marketing and noted that referral is not enough but having a proper confectionery outlet where a customer can walk into and pick up a ready baked cake or place an order.
Her long term plan, she says, is to make DCYUMMYCAKES a household name and to own a confectionery institute.
She advised young ones never to be scared of failure because failure is a stepping stone to success.
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