Meet Anabel De Bruijn

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Anabel De Bruijn. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Anabel below.

Anabel, looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?

My work ethic comes from my immigrant background. I spent my childhood watching my dad work himself to the bone as a small business owner. I never saw him complain or be unappreciative of the fruits of his labor. I learned that putting your best effort forward and working hard is a part of my heritage and I take pride in it.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

My love for baking cakes started in 2011, my daughter was 3 years old and I had lost a pregnancy at 20 weeks. I took time away from work to grieve and recover from the loss during this time I started experimenting in the kitchen with dessert recipes as a way to distract myself. Little did I know that this distraction would become a love that would take over my life. I began with creating elaborate cakes for my daughters birthday parties, then I eventually started to branch out and bake cakes for family and friends. It was during this time that I developed a deep love for baking, finding joy and fulfillment in creating delicious desserts. Experimenting with different recipes and techniques sparked the idea of sharing my creations with a wider audience. I developed signature recipes and a distinctive baking style that set me apart from others. Recognizing the uniqueness of my creations, I saw an opportunity to turn this talent into a business.

I have always had the desire to be my own boss, build something from scratch, and pursue a passion as a livelihood. The idea of creating a business that aligns with my interests and values was my motivation. Baking is not only about creating delicious treats but also about bringing joy to others. The thought of sharing my cakes with customers and being part of their special occasions—birthdays, weddings, celebrations—is incredibly rewarding

Wildflour Cakery is essentially the manifestation of my love for beautiful desserts, unique style and dedication to using high-quality ingredients. I take pride in my ability to create intricate designs and provide customers with personal touches. Those personal touches are where I set myself apart from other bakers, specifically in the creation of flowers which I make in different mediums such as wafer paper, sugar paste and hand pipped buttercream flowers. The art of creating flowers whether it be out of sugar paste or wafer paper is time consuming but so rewarding and fulfilling for me. I get so excited to see the smiles on my customers faces and their reluctance to want to cut the cake because it’s too pretty!

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

It has not been an easy road to get to where I am today. I began baking and selling cakes in Miami where I am originally from. I began this business in 2012 obtained my customers through word of mouth and referrals. That iteration of the business ended when my family moved to the metro Atlanta area in 2019. Being new to the area and not knowing the lay of the land as well as living through the pandemic made launching a business a little scary. I had the passion to continue following my dreams but Covid did not make it easy. So I decided to put the cake business on the back burner for the time being. During the pandemic I realized that this life isn’t promised to us and that we need to live everyday to our fullest. So during a spring break trip to Oregon on a hike I was surrounded by all these amazingly beautiful wild flowers their beauty, strength and fragility gave me the idea for the name of the business. With this inspiration I pushed through made some connections within my neighborhood and in late 2023 decided to go all in and launch Wild Flour Cakery.

Some of the lessons I have learned during this process is that you should never stop following your dreams and passions. When I took a hiatus from baking I felt empty like something was missing in my life. I was missing that challenge and creative process which I know now fuels me. This journey has taught me to follow that drive and intuition it will never lead you astray.

I would like to world to know is that cake designers are artist and the sugar art that we create is a piece of our heart. Every cake and dessert I create is an expression of my love for beauty and delicious food and I want all of my clients to feel that love with every bite.

Who is your ideal client or what sort of characteristics would make someone an ideal client for you?

My ideal client is someone who is open to letting me create something whimsical and fun. I love taking an idea and just running with it and letting my creative juices flow

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.wildflourcakeryatl.com
• Instagram: @wild_flour_cakery_atl

Image Credits

Gerald De Bruijn