occupy los angeles: moustaches

Monday, November 21, 2011

Inspired by Seattle cupcakeries, Pacetre is a cupcake business success story

I read about Evansville, Indiana's Pacetre in this Evansville Courier & Press article, and was impressed, especially by the Seattle cupcake bakery inspiration in the forms of Trophy Cupcakes and Cupcake Royale, both of which I adore.

That's when Tracy, her sister, Kelly, and her mother, Judy, started hatching a plan. They had all spent time in Seattle together and fallen in love with the cupcakeries, so it seemed a natural fit for a family business. The name, The Pacetre, (pronounced 'pastry') was formed by combining their last name with the Italian word for three.

"I was completely intrigued by the business model of just cupcakes and light beverage fares," says Tracy, who started researching the ins and outs and found that even in a recession, cupcake-only bakeries were a booming business.

"The failure rate of cupcakeries is 6 percent and that is generally due to poor planning," says Tracy, who considered several different business models before opening her locale at 2734 Mount Vernon Ave. Finding the right spot had its own set of challenges. She knew she wanted to be on the west side, close to home, and not in the university district so it would retain a "neighborhood coffee shop feel."

The location opened in early April after 14 months of searching. It is nestled next to GoodFella's Barber Shop, The Furniture Trauma Center and Beyond the Veil Fellowship and near The Haircut, the Quilter's Nest and Teresa Haller Photography. Tracy considers it an ideal spot, especially since it had once housed The Depot and Annie Mae's cafes. The location's former café status helped eliminate much red tape in getting the green light for their project.