Meet Winnie Baker

We were lucky to catch up with Winnie Baker recently and have shared our conversation below.

Winnie, 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?

Immigrating to the United States as a pre-teen alongside my family changes my perspective on a lot of things, working hard, being one of them! It’s wild to think that my parents left behind a comfortable middle class life from Hong Kong, to starting over in America with a significantly reduced salary in pursuit of a better education & outlook for my siblings & I. As a child, I’ve always wanted to do well in school as my way to thank for their sacrifices.

I wasn’t the smartest one in the classroom, but will always do the homework, submitting work on-time, and do the extra credit. After graduating as a valedictorian from high school, that work ethic transposed. That mentality carried over to adulthood and into starting my own business.

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

Sugar Cloud started with a mission to elevate life’s celebrations & events with something sweet. I was planning a baby shower (as I always do for family & friends), and came across with a cotton candy cart that was located in New York City. A few minutes of research later, I realized there is nothing like this in the Portland metro area. Soon after, Sugar Cloud the cotton candy cart was launched.

Since then, Sugar Cloud is evolving into a brand that excites kids & adults, party goers & organizers. We started showing up to wedding shows, booking weddings, corporate parties, kids parties…and anywhere in between. It’s a modern, new spin on nostalgia….who doesn’t remember having a sweet fluff as a child and the fluffiness it comes with? Sugar Cloud offers more than cotton candy, it’s the differentiator between a good party, to an amazing party. And it’s a dessert cart that is unique & different.

We are expanding our offerings into more sweets, starting with a candy bar option that can be added onto the cart alongside with cotton candy. The goal is to provide the ultimate sweetness to any events that needs just a little more sugar.

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?

A genuine approach to making connections, and being passionate in your field were truly the most impactful in this journey. Sugar Cloud was not born out of “making money”, but truly a desire to bring an elevated experience to the Portland party & event scene, and to make human connections in people’s life. I’ve always love chatting to others, learning about other’s life stories & milestones, and having that authentic approach to operating this business has served me well.

Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?

I don’t get overwhelmed a lot, but when I do, it’s often because I have too much on my plate & happens unexpectedly. In a previous corporate job, I was a Scrum Master – a team “coach” that helps a team self-organize, collaborate, and improve on how works get done. A lot of the techniques from that role can be used in life & I use them everyday. Having a “daily standup” with myself & those around me to reflect on the day before, set goals for today, and analysis what’s blocking to achieve those goals. I will also do a quick “retrospective” to reflect on the reasons why I feel overwhelmed, and it will help untangle those overwhelmed feelings & get organized.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://sugarcloudcart.com
• Instagram: @sugarcloud.cart