Today we’d like to introduce you to Maybel Kyin.
Maybel, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I’ve always had a passion for all things dessert. I enjoyed baking them as much as I enjoyed eating them. Anyone that knows me knows I love and appreciate food, especially desserts. But pursuing my career as a Doctor in Physical Therapy along with part-time jobs, teaching and research in addition to training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu has kept me busy these past few years. Until 2020 happened. For a short moment, life slowed down a little. Like everyone else at the peak of the pandemic, I found more time to experiment in the kitchen.
One weekend, I decided to sell cookies to fundraise towards Black Lives Matter. Then, I made my first layered cake for Mother’s Day. I had such a positive response from family and friends that I decided to turn this into a business. In August of 2020, I launched my menu and I did not expect the response I got. Fun fact- I decorated three cakes before I sold my first one. I’m a self-taught baker and cake decorator. I’ve learned along the way with every cake design request. Since my initial launch, I’ve been booked on cake orders for up to a month and have done multiple weddings, events and pop-ups. You can also find kyinspired bake cookies at Pisces Poke & Ramen in LA! Never in a million years did I think a weekend project would turn into what kyinspired bakes is now!
I’ve never lost more sleep in my life or stressed over sugar and flour. But it’s always worth it in the end. I bake what inspires me to be happy and I enjoy sharing that happiness with others. Life is too short to not enjoy the sweet moments. So #stresslesseatcookies.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
This journey has been anything but smooth. Learning my limitations has been the most challenging and a constant struggle. From taking way too many orders- resulting in literally days without sleep (maybe a 45-minute nap before work), attempting to multi-task too many errands or squeezing in too many tasks/deliveries in a small time frame. The perfect example: I took an order to supply 300-600 individually packaged cookies (my oven can only bake eight cookies at a time… if you do the math, that’s a lot of oven time) every week for a Netflix event. The event ran two months longer than initially planned which overlapped with my wedding. I was more stressed over the cookies than our wedding!
Like many small business owners, we wear multiple hats, from baker to photographer, social media content creator, accounting, marketing, packaging, etc. Juggling between this side business, a full-time job, part-time jobs, working out and training BJJ– it’s a lot. I’ve definitely learned how to maximize each second of my day. With that said, it’s a struggle to find a healthy balance in my life as there seems to never be enough hours in a day. This business truly wouldn’t be possible without my family and very patient husband.
Some days seem endless, some days my oven is on for over 13 hours after a full day at work, and some days I’m so tired to even formulate sentences. But the bumps in the road helped me discover new limits and they have led kyinspired bakes to what it is now.
We’d love to learn more about your work. What do you do, what do you specialize in, what are you known for, etc. What are you most proud of? What sets you apart from others?
Kyinspired bakes (pronounced kin-spired bakes; a play on my last name) specializes in custom cakes, not your average cookies, ube mochi brownies, brown butter matcha brownies and a rotating featured cookie. The flavors are creative and unique and the ingredients are always the highest quality. Staying close to my Asian roots and wanting to share the beautiful flavors with the community, many of the baked goods are inspired by pan-Asian flavors. The attention to detail sets my products apart from others.
There’s something to suit everyone’s taste buds but the most popular items are the s’mores cookies and ube mochi brownies. Each cookie has a deep, rich buttery flavor with the perfect chewy texture. But the marshmallow and graham crackers in the smore’s cookie just takes it to the next level. The ube mochi brownies are just layers of flavor and texture- the chewiness from the ube mochi, then the perfectly smooth homemade ube halaya, topped with toasted coconuts for a little crunch.
What makes you happy?
Besides traveling, food and ice cream, sharing the love of my baked goods with others brings me so much happiness. Hearing them enjoy the products of this passion project is worth every bit of stress. Baking is a labor of love. Decorating a cake is like creating art. Having the opportunity to share something I’m so passionate about with my family, friends and the community is a blessing.
Pricing:
- 1 dozen cookies $15
- 3 ube mochi brownies $12
- 3 white chocolate brown butter matcha brownies $8
- 6 featured stuffed cookies $12
- Mini chocolate hazelnut tarts $7
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.kyinspiredbakes.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kyinspired.bakes/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kyinspired.bakes
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/kyinspired-bakes-azusa
