WHEN Stephanya Chevanese Odiase started Made by Mom Cakes in 2019, she had one goal in mind: Help pay for her children’s university education.

With a nine-to-five job and bills to manage, she needed another source of income. Baking, a passion she had nurtured since high school, offered a way to earn more while doing something she loved.

“I started because my daughter was supposed to start university, and the money was not much. I had a nine-to-five, and things were a bit low, so I said, ‘Let me do something that I could earn some more,’ Odiase recalled.

That practical decision would become much more than a means of financing her children’s education. Odiase had been baking for decades before turning her passion into a business. Her love for the kitchen developed during childhood, influenced by a mother who cooked frequently and introduced her to the joys of preparing food. That early interest stayed with her through high school and into adulthood. She later completed a course in baking and decorating before spending 14 years working at a bakery. Eventually, she decided it was time to build something of her own.

Starting out, however, was not easy. With limited capital, Odiase had to make do with what she had. But instead of waiting until she had enough money to establish a fully equipped operation, she started small and gradually reinvested the earnings from the business.

“I had to start on what I had: one stove, one small mixer, and then gradually, you know, I built up. I got a bigger one, a bigger stove,” she told the Jamaica Observer.

Over time, the equipment improved, and the business grew. Made by Mom Cakes now operates as her sole source of income, taking orders for birthdays, weddings and other occasions, with deliveries arranged islandwide. Vanilla and fruit cakes are among the most requested, with the Christmas season bringing a particularly busy period for the business.

“Christmas is my time,” Odiase said with a laugh. “I like to bake fruitcake, and I like to eat that cake as well.”

The business has also expanded beyond its original offerings, with cinnamon buns recently added to the product line. But perhaps the most meaningful measure of success for Odiase is the very reason she started baking commercially in the first place — her children. She is proud that both her children completed university, having used the additional income from the business to help support their education. Her daughter Druzila Samuel,s who studied tourism, has since returned to help with the administrative side of the family business after assisting her mother while she was at university.

“I’m proud to see the children….because I actually started the business to earn more money than the nine-tofive. So they finished university. They made me proud,” Odiase said.

With her original goal achieved, Odiase could have stepped away from the business. Instead, she continued baking, driven by her passion.

“I’ve been baking around 30 years now. I actually started the business itself to really earn from it because of them [her children] going to university, but I always have the love for baking,” she told the Sunday Finance.

That love continues to shape her ambitions. Odiase hopes to grow the business further, with plans to explore supermarket distribution and, eventually, the possibility of a franchise. For now, she is focused on expanding Made by Mom Cakes and building on what she has created from modest beginnings. “You just have to have faith to start. Sometimes it’s not the money. You know, once you have a drive, just start. Just start,” said Odiase.

A custom-made birthday cake by Made by Mom Cakes.

Cupcakes decorated with green and white frosting and gold accents by Made by Mom Cakes.