Business as usual for Midnight Pastry
While most Fijians spent the Good Friday holiday with their loved ones, it was business as usual for a family of three.
Fifty-year-old Nancy Valentine was out with her family yesterday selling their pastries in offices that were open around the Suva’s Central Business District.
The family business called Midnight Pastry has been in operation for about three years now and is run by the single mother and her daughters from their Nadawa home.
Their pastries have grown popular among office workers around Suva and they ensure they do not disappoint by delivering pies and cakes six days a week without fail.
Their only rest day is Sunday.
Her daughter Talei Banuve, 30, who runs the administration side of things said they do not have anything
special planned for Easter because they have had to deal with orders over the long weekend.
Beginnings
Ms Banuve left her office job in 2019 to help run her mum’s business full time.
“My mum started this business with my aunt before branching out to start her own,” she said.
“Before I joined her I used to feel embarrassed going to offices to sell pastries but I got over it when I saw that what I used to earn as my two weeks’ pay in my office job, my mum earned in one day in her business.
“It’s all about sacrifices, commitment and the will to persevere.
“We sell from 6am to 11am and then we take a short rest when we get home and we start baking again from 2pm until night before preparing for the next day.”
She said they earn about $400 a day and make a good profit from their daily sales.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and while other businesses were feeling the economic downturn, Midnight Pastries continued and soared to greater heights.
With the profit they have earned Ms Banuve said her mother is now planning to buy a piece of land to build a family home.