Meet Zoila Navales and Sara Aleman of Drunken Cake Pops

Today we’d like to introduce you to Zoila Navales and Sara Aleman.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Where to begin, we both love to drink and eat, a pair of self-proclaimed foodies and drinkers. We often traveled to various places one bite and sipped at a time. We were in Portland around the Spring of 2013. Fell in love with the local distillery scene and the heightened level of happiness these owners exuded as they shared their booze with us.

Coming from two high stress industries, I am in the medical field and Sara is in film and television, we yearned for that fresh breath of air, who knows, maybe it was the smell of fermentation in the air, but at that moment, Sara and I looked at each other and new we wanted to share something amazing with others too. It was the “height of the cupcake craze,” and we knew we needed to come with something fresh and new, but also familiar. We figured the next wave of food craze would be artisanal donuts and ice cream, which we are in currently seeing now; and we had to be one ahead of that.

So we decided on a cake pop, and it was quite brilliant. Cake and booze are two of the most popular vices and so familiar, it was a wonder how no one else was capitalizing on it. We loved the idea of a cake pop because, at the time, it was around, but no one was specializing only in cake pops, and we definitely didn’t see anyone offering liquor infused ones. So with $300 as start-up money to spare, no baking background, some idea about business management, and plenty of time and drive, we created Drunken Cake Pops.

Our first two years consisted of learning how to make a cake pop (spoiler alert, molds are NOT the way), we learned how to start a business, what a DBA was, how to build a website, etc. Once the basics were cleared, we then had to trim our vast menu which seemed great on paper, but as we created the pops, they were not up to par, We mainly sold to friends and family from our home kitchen, “Thanks Gov. Brown for the CFO permit”, which allowed us to do so.

We could only afford free events or ones that didn’t exceed $50. Borrowed tarps, chairs, and tables learned how to set up and tear down, and fit everything we had in a tiny Toyota Corolla. Finally, reaching year three, we were invited to join Street Food Cinema.

Growing with them was amazing, and with the help of a few other community events, we were well received and found a great rhythm, allowing us to go from crawling to walking to taking much larger strides. By this point, we had exchanged most of our weekends for events, never saying no to an opportunity, despite many saying no to us. This taught us to appreciate every chance we got and every door we opened, knowing that we had one shot at every first impression.

One of these rogue events we did was called “The Underground Market,” and this was what brought us to San Pedro. Once there, we saw the potential charm with Crafted at the Port of LA, and with some convincing by the market manager at the time, we decided to take the leap and open up our little shop open three days a week.

It was like training for us, trying to see the balance of work and business, and playing with the notion of meeting the demands of running a shop with necessary inventory and time commitment. A few years later, we have become a staple not only inside the Crafted Warehouse but in the San Pedro Community as well. Knowing we were solid and steady in the shop, Sara and I decided to pursue our event scene more aggressively; now that we had the capital to participate in larger venues.

With the steadiness of Street Food Cinema, we went ahead and signed up for multiple festivals, shows, and conventions, such as Patchwork, Unique LA, Jackalope, and Cookie Con. By the end of the 4th year, we had our eyes set on one of the largest food festivals we have seen out there, 626 Night Market. It wasn’t easy, dealing with heat, crazy setups, long hours, power outages, winds, and a demand for a quantity we weren’t sure we could handle, Sara and I stepped up, moved into Crafted Kitchen in DTLA, and started producing hundreds of cake pops at a time.

Proud to say, 2018 has been our best year yet, completing the full season with 626 and OC Night Market, in addition to our other shows and shop, and best of all, we are about 5,000 cake pops away from having handmade 100,000 cake pops since the conception of Drunken Cake Pops. We are proud to say, that as for two women of color, the American Dream is still alive and well.

Has it been a smooth road?
We always say, if the road was paved, it would be as congested as the 405 freeway on a Friday. As we mentioned before, we only had $300 to spare, no baking background, and very minimal entrepreneurial experience. We have had our share of “no’s,” offers to completely rebrand, meltdowns (both from our cake pops and ourselves), and events that didn’t have the outcome we were hoping for. But with each of those hurdles, Sara and I got up, learned a lesson, and kept going. We fueled ourselves with those lessons and strived to be better and to soak up as much knowledge through each experience, especially in each attempt that didn’t pan out.

During one event, I had managed to break two of our three glass vases, lesson learned, everything became plastic or wood. In another event, there was a hill and parking was at the bottom, after hauling everything in 3-4 trips, Sara and I bought a heavy duty dolly and trimmed our display down by 40%.

Now at year five, we have been able to look back at our path traveled and seen where we stumbled a little more than others, we see our weekends filled with events, holidays lost with family, and birthdays missed, but we also see how far we have gone, and the path we have created for other people who may be thinking of starting their own business and not knowing if they can or believe they need to break the bank in order to start. To them, we say, “Vision without execution, is a hallucination,” so get up and try, and in doing so, you are already a step ahead.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Drunken Cake Pops – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
We didn’t want to be known as alcoholics, so we became entrepreneurs! It’s all in the name, Drunken Cake Pops, we are the creators and distributors of liquor infused cake pops. That is our bread and butter, and what we are known for, although, we do serve a pretty good variety of “virgin” cake pops, such as Shirley Temple, Mudslide, Cookies and Cream, and Horchata. A teacher once told Sara, “Vision without execution is hallucination,” as two young women of color, we are proud to have, own, and live this vision, and are excited to see what the future has for us.

The thing that sets us apart would be the fact that we are a full service, unlike other shops, we not only serve cake pops, but we also provide an experience. We pride in our customer service and brand awareness, from our Speakeasy Menu to our BYOB (build your own bag/box) six-pack, to our Sips (mini cake pops off the stick) we are always looking for a way to make you feel like you are getting more than just a cake pop. We take the time to talk to our customers, take suggestions, remember conversations, and be a part of their traditions.

Example, every year a family from Arizona orders our pops for Thanksgiving and (going on their 3rd year) it is their tradition to “Toast” to another blessed year with our cake pops in hand. That’s what you get from Drunken Cake Pops and the fact that the booze in our cake pops will leave just enough of its essence on your tongue to make you smile.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
Let’s start with what we like least… TRAFFIC. Don’t matter if it’s 2 PM, 9:30 AM, 4:52 PM, traffic has gotten worse. The only relief is possibly Sunday morning before 8:30 AM… in Hollywood. Running late to set up for an event at 3 PM, during a heat wave, with no shade, is never usually fun. The best thing about our city? It’s LA! Whether a born and bred Angeleno or a transplant, hands down, LA is the greatest city.

With our diversity and food revolution, LA has it down solid. Being in the nitty-gritty, we see many entrepreneurs not just start, but also thrive. LA has provided us with a place to share culture, ideas, food, stories, and life within a diverse community. The fusion foods and the authentic cuisines marry so well in this city; and when people are fed, people are happy.

Contact Info:

• Address: 112 E. 22nd St San Pedro, CA 907351
• Website: www.drunkencakepops.com
• Phone: 323.449.7909
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drunkencakepops
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrunkenCakePops/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/drunken-cake-pops-san-pedro

Image Credit:
Lexus Gallegos

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