Full of confectionary fun
By: Kavahn Mansouri
-Editor in Chief-
Getting the Icing Cafe running for the day is a process that starts at 7:30 a.m. sharp and ends at 10 a.m. when the store opens. The shop opens and another day of cookies, brownies, cakes, muffins, cupcakes and more begins.
STLCC-Meramec alumni Beth Kullmann and co-owner started the Icing Cafe in September of 2011 with Amy Nielson. Kullman said it was a combination of unemployment and the need for a life change that got the cafe off the ground.
“I was laid off from a job I didn’t like so we decided to do something different,” Kullmann said. “When we decided to do the shop it was about doing something different then the careers we had both been in previously.”
Kullmann said a major factor in opening the shop was the lack of customization for cakes and desserts around St. Louis.
“When we decided to do the shop we had talked to a lot of the people we knew. One of the things we heard was that no one did any custom work anymore,” Kullmann said. “Amy is self-taught, so she kind of had developed this [customizing] style along the way.”
The fact that they are in charge is one of the reasons Kullmann said she loves the shop so much.
“I think that I really love the fact that it’s our shop and we can do what we want to do, and there is nobody telling us what we have to do,” Kullmann said.
While Nielson handles the baking and design of the desserts, Kullmann works on the business side of things as well as decorating the cafe. She studied interior design at Meramec, where she said she crafted her talent.
I handle the business side and decorate the shop, while Amy bakes the cakes and does the wedding stuff,” Kullmann said. “
“[Meramec] helped me understand the look of the cafe. When we said we were going to do this I knew exactly what it was going to look like,” Kullman said. “I knew from my time doing space planning, color theory and all the stuff I did in the interior design program I knew I had to have a certain aesthetic.”
Kullmann said she went to Meramec to work towards a degree in interior design.
“I went back to Meramec to get a different degree when my kids were little. I just got a degree in interior design because it was something I was interested in,” Kullmann said.
Kullmann said the business side of things is another reason she loves working at the cafe. She is the pushing force behind running the café fluidly.
“I love the business side of it; I do love going out and meeting people. I like to talk to people and do that sort of stuff. My thing is not the baking, that’s Amy’s stuff,” Kullmann said.
Kullmann said she and Nielson plan on expanding their business after a successful opening year.
“We want to continue to expand our corporate business, we’re currently reevaluating our business plan. We’re reassessing after our first year to see what how we did and what we need to work on,” Kullmann said.
