From Fashion Designer to Cake Designer
We had lots of bad one-star reviews, but we learned.
I was a fashion designer before becoming a chef and cafe owner. I grew up in Singapore. That’s where I studied fashion. I worked in the fashion industry for about 10 years. I even worked for Ralph Lauren as a buyer.
About 18 years ago, my husband Gunny and I decided to migrate to Australia. My three kids grew up here. We initially lived on the Gold Coast, then we moved up to Brisbane. I tried to get a job in the fashion industry, but this industry is too small in Brisbane. Because Gunny had a job already, we couldn’t just move to Melbourne or Sydney where the industry is much larger. That’s how baking came to my life.
I started baking from home, and then on and off I took a few classes here and there. I even took some in Singapore. I started with cakes but also learned about bread making. Then I realised that I actually like doing it. It became a passion, and I started off working in a commercial bakery. Yeah. That’s where I picked up all the tricks of the trade, and that’s where I gained experience before opening Nos Bakehouse & Cafe. So it’s a totally different career path for me.
Opening a cafe was nerve-wracking. Initially, Gunny wasn’t very excited about the idea because it’s too risky. I can understand that. You have to put a huge amount of money in, and if you don’t do it well, that’s it. You’re done for. Yeah, so it’s nerve-wracking. But I was confident… and I knew I would put in my absolute best effort. I had an idea, a concept and I knew the team that I wanted to have around. From the beginning, I knew what I wanted. I just went ahead, pushing myself through.
The day we opened was very stressful! We had a lot more customers than we expected. People were queuing up and we couldn’t cope with that amount of people. I was really stressed, because my experience is in the kitchen. I know how to run that. But I’m not front-of-house or barista trained. It was chaos. We had lots of bad one-star reviews, but we learned. We learn from the mistakes we make and we have come a long way. We’re always busy and it’s a good problem to have — we can manage it. We have lots of lovely regulars.
I don’t like saying I’m proud because there’s a lot more learning to do, but I can see the effort that we put in was worth it. It’s always an ongoing process! We have a seasonal menu. I’m always thinking about what to do next.