Today we’d like to introduce you to Kabila Gana Lapnet.
Kabila, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I grew up in a household where baking was the norm, so I carried this habit into my adulthood. I would always bake for my guests and show up to events with baked treats that people enjoyed.
My cousin knew I loved baking and invited me to a class on ‘cakepops 101’. This was an amazing class. We had a lot of fun, and I was exposed to a whole new perspective of what I could do with my love for baking. After this class, I started learning to perfect my skills, try new designs and decided to turn my passion into a business venture – that is how Kabsykreation was born.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It has been a bumpy ride hahaha. Like they say, ‘nothing good comes easy’. There have been ups and downs but the good has outweighed the bad. I continue to take the lessons out of every situation. When I had the initial thought at the time to start a business, I wondered how I would raise capital, get clients, and be profitable. I had a full-time job and was contemplating grad school at the time so it felt like I had a lot on my plate. Nevertheless, I was determined to succeed and went for it.
I did some market research to better understand the market and the one thing I took away was that as long as I was determined, there was space for me in this market! The first two years were rough. I struggled with marketing my products and putting myself out there. I eventually learned how to look for my unique positioning and how to differentiate myself. Also, I struggled with getting clients and learned how to start talking about my business. I started by telling my family, my colleagues and my friends about kabsyKreations so they could in turn, share with their friends and families to support me.
I created social media accounts to advertise, market and learn from customers as well. I remain amazed at how much I have learned from my online community and mentors in this business. I still have a full-time job and have been in school for the last two years getting an MBA at Rice University, while running Kabsykreations. This has made me prioritize, plan, value and appreciate time even more.
Please tell us about kabsykreations.
I’ve always believed in adding a personal touch to livelihood at every opportunity and really hope that I can help people add unique and personal treats to every life event and milestone – nothing is too small to celebrate with treats. This led me to found Kabsykreations. We curate personalized treats for events, from baby showers, ‘just because’, and graduations to weddings. ‘If you can think it, we can Create it!!’ is our mentality. We take pride in bringing sweet dreams to life!
We care a lot about our customers’ experiences and we bring them along our journey from conception and idealization to implementation. We believe this is what makes us stand out. There’s a lot of TLC that goes into every order. Some clients have a great idea of what they want and others need inspiration. We walk that journey with our clients to ensure that we surpass their expectations so that we have satisfied clients.
I am most proud of the number of families and kids whose sweet dreams we have brought to life. Kabsykreations has grown from an idea to what it is today and we are even more excited about the potential for additional growth.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
I would have started the business earlier haha. On a serious note, if I had to start over, I will make sure that kabsykreations was part and parcel of ‘who I am’ at every given opportunity. You know how you go to places and are asked to introduce yourself… I realized that in the beginning I will introduce myself and forget about my business. So I learned to not do that!
Another thing was product creation. Instead of only waiting on an order to fulfill, I played around with different design ideas to practice and be prepared for when those orders came in. Also, with ideas in mind, I can propose different products to my clients. I also took and still take classes to continue to learn and grow. Never be afraid to ask and learn!
Furthermore, I learned about managing business finances and keeping things straight. Numbers are important. The only way the numbers make sense if you have them in order! Keep business and personal finances separate. Above all, I have learned to be patient and to take time out for myself. Life can get very hectic – so taking a step back is a necessity.
Contact Info:
- Phone: 8324229391
- Email: kabsykreations@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kabsykreations/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pg/KabsyKreation/photos/
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