‘I turned my loss of Mum into a legacy’
Elaine Rémy, 46, spent 20 years living in France, where she ran her own coaching and training business. In 2018, she moved to Windermere in the Lake District, where she lives with her partner Dave, 54. The following year she launched Vie’s Jamaican Rum Cakes, producing traditional cakes infused with the finest Jamaican white rum.
THE IDEA
When my mum was alive, she used to make amazing fruit cakes for members of our family, her friends, neighbours and colleagues, which she would lace with overproof Jamaican rum. When she passed away in May 2018, I decided to turn my loss into a legacy and make the cakes using my mum’s recipe (and adding a few original touches of my own, including a gluten-free cake), to continue sharing the love of rum cake, which is a part of my heritage. My mum’s nickname was Vie, short for Viola, which was her middle name, so I named the business Vie’s
Jamaican Rum Cakes. It was officially launched on what would have been her 76th birthday on 7 December 2019.
WHAT HAPPENED NEXT
I did some taste tests in a few of my local networking groups and received some really encouraging feedback. So I decided to create three varieties of cake to suit a range of different tastes: Rummy, Rummier and Rummiest.
BREAKTHROUGH MOMENT
The first breakthrough moment was when I outsourced production of the cakes to a local bakery. This was a perfect solution for me as the bakery had the facilities, the qualified staff and the necessary certifications that meant I could concentrate on all the other aspects of the business. The second breakthrough moment was when I started to sell the cakes at local markets and food events. My first market was so successful that I immediately started applying to attend others.
STEEPEST LEARNING CURVE
My greatest lesson has been in the area of scaling up. It’s not just a question of multiplying the recipe by six if you require six times as many cakes. It takes time to get scaling up right and it’s vital to collaborate with experts, who know how to resolve technical issues.
WHERE I AM NOW
Due to the increase in sales from various markets and events, production had to be scaled up during the last quarter of 2021, which meant that I was able to start receiving batches on a monthly basis from the bakers. I recently announced a surprise cake subscription, so I’m eager to see where 2022 will take that. Due to increased demand, a vegan cake is now being developed, and a ‘smooth’ cake for people who don’t like fruit cakes is also in the making. I’m also developing pairing collaborations with different artisan food and drinks companies, including cheese, tea, brownie, chocolate and ice cream companies.