Mataya: Baker with vision

For 23-year-old Kate Mataya, baking has always been one of her passions. At a young age, Mataya taught herself baking by reading extensively and experimenting on recipes.

In an interview recently, she said her cake business came into being after being encouraged by her father one day in 2012 when she made banana muffins for her family.

“I was skeptical about the whole idea because I had never run a business and I was not sure it would be successful. However, my father offered to sell the cakes at his pharmacy in Blantyre, a suggestion I agreed to and Kay Z treats was established,” Mataya recalled.

She said business was slow at first, but Mataya has since established a solid customer base and expanded her business.

Her breakthrough to bake for functions, she said, came when she baked a birthday cake for a five-year-old.

“After I made that birthday cake, I got a lot of customers who wanted me to make similar cakes for their children’s birthday parties. I also began getting orders from major organisations where they wanted desert cakes for their work functions, weddings and bridal showers,” Mataya said.

She added that towards the end of 2012, as the Christmas season was approaching, Mataya decided to expand her customer base by opening a Facebook page called KayZ Treats which she used to advertise the cakes she made.

“Christmas is such a busy time for my kind of business. I knew that opening a page on Facebook would be a good marketing move because I would reach out to potential customers on a grand scale quiet easily,” Mataya explained.

Her gamble paid off as she got a lot of positive feedback. People began ordering her cakes whose prices range from K6 000 (about $15) to K25 000 (about $62.50) depending on the size and flavour.

“I used to get an average of two customers a week who were usually family friends. After I opened the page, I got a whole new set of customers who more than trippled. I began getting an average of eight orders a week. People out of Blantyre also became interested in my cakes. I’ve sent cakes to customers in Lilongwe and one lady from the UK asked me to make a birthday cake for her nephew,” she said.

Being dependent on orders is one of the major challenges Mataya faces. On a few occasions she has gone without an order for a week.

Mataya, who is currently pursuing a degree in Pharmacy at the College of Medicine, juggles school and business. She has plans to start baking wedding cakes as they are very marketable. Mataya also hopes to open her own bakeries in the country’s major cities where she can show case her cake creations.