Inspiring Conversations with Briseida Whitehead-Garcia and Richard Plascencia

Today we’d like to introduce you to Briseida Whitehead-Garcia and Richard Plascencia.

Hi Briseida and Richard, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
So there we were, Chingona, Brie, baking in the kitchen and Chingon, Rick, sitting at our dining room table eating our ‘Chocolate Dream’ cupcake which is a chocolate cupcake with vanilla buttercream frosting, topped with a freshly baked brownie and chocolate drizzle. We thought “hey, I would definitely pay for this”. This cupcake sparked our imaginations and we wanted to create cupcakes that were not only looked over the top but had a taste to match.

Now that we had a business idea, we wanted the brand to be a representation of who we are and our ethnic roots. Chingona means “bad ass woman” in Spanish, which Chingon thought was the perfect nickname for Brie and identity of our business. Chingon wanted to create an identity all people could relate to since we are all Chingon and Chingona in our own right. With each cupcake, we put aside our personal problems in the world and for a moment enjoy the mouthwatering satisfaction.

May of 2020 during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, Chingonas Cupcakes was born. Since the start of our business, it has been our focus to be Chicano oriented, which serves all demographics. We reach out to all of those who have a sweet tooth and craving for unique desserts. Chingonas Cupcakes likes to remain unique by giving “Spanglish” names to our custom cupcakes. Although Chingonas creates unique designs, we welcome customers personalized ideas and transform them into a desirable treat. This can be flavors, colors, themes and designs.

Since the start of Chingonas Cupcakes both the Chingon and Chingona have been self-taught, with no prior experience. Our experience and skills have always been driven by our unique imaginations and our willingness to accept challenges. The doubt and negativity received in the beginning of our business only fueled our desire to be successful. Almost a year later, Chingonas Cupcakes has a cliental of 10 percent which was referred to by other business to accept challenges that were otherwise out of our range of skills. We both believe our resentment for failure dedicated us to the details in our work and achieved customer satisfaction. Chingonas Cupcakes is grateful for the support we have received and look forward to reaching out and growing our Chingona family.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The biggest hurdle Chingonas Cupcakes have faced is the customer to staff ratio. The word of mouth has created an influx of customers which we greatly appreciate. With the growing customer base, we unfortunately sell out fast and unfortunately are unable to accommodate everyone. It is our hope that in the future, we are able to grow our Chingonas Cupcakes family to meet the customer demand. Chingonas is a hobby of passion but is not our primary career which creates a time constraint in regards to fulfilling orders. As time goes on we gain experience and refine our skills baking and design the cupcakes with less production time. We have learned to manage our time with our full-time careers and our business but in the future look forward to ideas of owning multiple storefronts.

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Our identity was derived from our ethnic roots but our logo was driven by our love for rock music and a rebel lifestyle. We are driven by going against the grain and encourage those to ditch the given path and forge their own. We are most proud of our “zero f*&$’s” attitude which empowered us to block out negativity and thrive on the good vibes. We want readers to know Chingonas is not your average bakery but a brand that is encouraging of a lifestyle of individualism. We currently are offering cupcakes but look forward to offering more options as we grow our Chingona family.

How do you think about luck?
Here at Chingonas Cupcakes, we do not believe in luck. We believe in hard work, messy aprons, and bags under the eyes. These things coupled with grit have allowed us to grow to where we are today.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chingonascupcakes/