For many entrepreneurs and small businesses, social media can be an absolute game-changer! All it takes is one viral post and a business can suddenly take off.
At Like A Voss Inc, we’re highlighting local businesses and entrepreneurs who are killing the online game. This week’s spotlight is on Vanessa and Valentina Cafazzo, owners of Euro Desserts!
Euro Desserts is a family run business that has evolved over the last 10 years into a company known for their innovative desserts and fresh taste.
Our girl Betina interviewed Vanessa and Valentina about their secret to success in business and in life. We also got some awesome insights into what they think makes social media such an effective tool in business.
A Little Bit About Being an Entrepreneur
1: How long have you been in business?
Euro Desserts has been in business for almost 6 years.
2: What made you decide to break away from the 9-5 and start Euro Desserts?
From a young age, we were always spending many afternoons playing in our parent’s bakeries. We would sit on mixers just watching our dad roll dough, our mom help customers, and our nonna cook food in the kitchen. We were just surrounded by such hard working and driven mentors, it was almost instilled in us to become entrepreneurs. We both tried to see if there was something else out there for us but shortly realized that this is where we wanted to be. Our whole lives were based around running a business and now we wake up everyday excited to be making others happy through our desserts.
3: What do you love most about being an entrepreneur?
We love that being an entrepreneur makes us feel very rewarded and accomplished. You have all the control over the brand we want to create, the services we provide, and the way we operate. We love that there is always something new to plan or to work on, we definitely never get bored working for ourselves and working with each other. It also makes us really happy that we can make our parents proud. They have sacrificed so much for us and worked so hard to teach us everything they know.
4: What is the hardest thing you have had to overcome as an entrepreneur? Something you did not foresee when you decided to start Euro Desserts?
Owning a business is not as glamorous as people make it seem. It is a lot of work and requires a lot of your time and energy 24/7. The hardest things we have had to overcome as entrepreneurs would have to be creating and finding a solid team of workers, understanding that managing your money and having an organized accounting system is almost as important as creating and selling products, and accepting that you never shut off from your business. It was really hard for us to create a balance between work and life outside of work.
Running our own business seemed so easy and we never understood that book keeping and balancing your accounts is so important. You could have the best product in the world and could be making great money selling those items but, if you are unaware of how much you’re spending, that is where you can really do damage.
Without a team behind you, it is very hard to operate or grow your business and we would say that trying to create a team has been one of the most difficult parts of running a business. During the pandemic especially, working from home has become the way of life and as a business that could never provide that to people, finding workers who are willing to come into our facility to work has been difficult. Rome wasn’t built in a day but it did take many working people to create it.
5: What is one thing about working in the desserts industry that people would be surprised to learn?
We think people would be surprised to learn that you never shut off. We are constantly thinking about what tasks we need to do the next day, what new products we can introduce, our goals for the next year, we are never not thinking about what’s next. It may also be surprising to know that the dessert industry is very laborious. We never stop moving and sometimes don’t even have enough time in our day to drink water. It is a very fast paced environment and requires a lot of movement. It is definitely a good thing because it is a way for us to burn off all the desserts we have eaten throughout the day.
And Now Onto The Social Media Questions!
6: Do you have a favorite social media platform? Why?
We love using Instagram and TikTok. We use Instagram more because TikTok takes a little bit more time and effort and we sometimes don’t have all that time to just make videos all day. But with that being said we find that Instagram is so great because it gives you the opportunity to be creative and showcase your content in many ways. You can post a photo or make a reel or even connect other accounts like TikTok and showcase your videos through there. It is a fun way to build your portfolio and reach so many people not only in your area (GTA for us) but people all over the country and world. It is also so effective. We built our business through Instagram.
7: What made you decide to start using social media as a way to promote your company?
We did a lot of research. We read articles about how to organize and operate your social media pages, we talked to other friends and family members to get their insight and learn what trends they like to see, and mainly we looked at what other bakeries/businesses were doing and tried to apply that to our own pages as well.
We figured that they were successful and had a great following so maybe we have something to learn from them.
8: How has social media impacted your business? Would you say that it’s an effective marketing tool?
Social media is a great marketing tool and is very important in running a business nowadays. From our own experience, you can build your business overnight.
Six years ago we were mainly wholesale. We would make cakes and breads for grocery stores and other banquet halls and in 2019 around Valentine’s Day, we decided to have a little fun and created our donut bouquet. Something that we thought would help us make a little more revenue exploded on social media and our business literally transformed overnight. We were showcased on many other blogs, social media platforms, radio stations, and even were mentioned on CP24.
One post on Instagram helped set our business into the direction we always hoped for and now we couldn’t be more grateful.
9: What advice would you give to other businesses and entrepreneurs who want to use social media as a way to connect with customers?
Just go for it and don’t be afraid to be different. It’s really easy to stick with the trends that you see on social media and follow the same format but it is always great to be a little different. You stand out that way.
Also, engage with your customers/followers. Answer comments, ask for feedback from your costumes, and show your face and be known on your platform. Our biggest downfall and something we are working on is to be more visible on our social media. We post a lot of dessert content but not so much. We get a lot of activity on our posts/ videos when we are in them and that is something we are working to be better at on our social media this year.
A Little More About Vanessa and Valentina
- We eat at least a donut a day
- Valentina’s favorite donut flavors are strawberry cheesecake, dunk and dip, and jos donut
- Vanessa’s favorite donut flavours are maple caramel, caramel brownie, and ferrero rocher
- We do everything together but are night and day
- We love working with each other but sometimes just want to throw a donut across the room
Connect with Vanessa and Valentina
Know A Voss Boss?
Do you know a Voss Boss who loves social media as much as we do? Contact us today – we’d love to tell her story!
