Today we’d like to introduce you to Natalie Rosa.
Hi Natalie, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Honestly, my love for baking and entrepreneurship started when I was very young. I was only 8 years old when I started making cupcakes and lemonade and selling them every Saturday across the street from my house. So, I guess you could say I’ve always had a sweet hustle!
For 15 years, I worked as a medical assistant, but baking was always something I loved and dreamed about doing on a bigger scale. In 2020, I lost my sister, and that experience really changed my perspective on life. It made me realize how short life can be and that I didn’t want to spend my life putting off something I was passionate about.
I decided to take a leap of faith and step away from my career in healthcare to pursue my baking business. It was definitely scary, but I knew I had to give myself the opportunity to see what I could build.
What started as a passion eventually grew into a Latina-owned mobile dessert business. We started by doing events with our tent setup, and as the business grew, we eventually added our mini dessert bus. It’s been amazing being able to bring our desserts into different communities and connect with so many people along the way.
One thing that has really helped set us apart is our macarons. We absolutely love making them, and they’ve become one of our specialties. Our customers specifically seek us out for them, which has been such an incredible feeling.
When I look at where I started—an 8-year-old girl selling cupcakes and lemonade across the street from her house—and where I am today, it honestly makes me proud. This business is about so much more than desserts for me. It represents taking a chance on myself, following my passion, honoring my sister’s memory by truly living life, and showing myself that sometimes you just have to take that leap of faith.
I’m still growing, still learning, and still dreaming bigger. But I’m incredibly grateful that I had the courage to finally turn something I loved as a child into the life I’m building today.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Definitely not! It has been far from a smooth road. When I first started, I honestly had no idea what I was doing when it came to the business side.
The first thing I had to figure out was, “What permits and licenses do I even need?” I had absolutely no clue. I remember having to reach out to other business owners and ask for help filling out forms and figuring out things I had never dealt with before. And I’ll be honest—I don’t always feel comfortable asking for help. I’m the type of person who likes to figure things out on my own, so learning that it was okay to ask questions and lean on other people was a big lesson for me.
I also had to learn how to budget and manage the financial side of the business, which was another area I really struggled with in the beginning. When you’re passionate about what you do, it’s easy to focus on the creative side and forget that running a business requires just as much attention to numbers, planning, permits, expenses, and everything behind the scenes.
On top of that, leaving a career I had been in for 15 years and taking a leap into entrepreneurship came with a lot of uncertainty. There were definitely moments when I questioned myself and wondered if I had made the right decision.
But every challenge forced me to learn something new. I had to become comfortable being uncomfortable, asking for help, learning from other business owners, making mistakes, and figuring things out as I went.
Looking back, I’m actually grateful for those struggles because they’ve made me a much stronger business owner. I didn’t start with all the answers—I started with a passion, a dream, and the willingness to learn. And I think that’s one of the biggest lessons my journey has taught me: you don’t have to know everything when you start. You just have to be willing to learn and keep going.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Our business is a women-owned mobile dessert company built from a genuine love for baking, creativity, and bringing people together through sweets. We specialize in macarons, cheesecakes, cookies, cupcakes, and Latin-inspired desserts.
One of the things we’re best known for is our macarons. We took the time to really learn and perfect the art of making them because macarons are not an easy dessert to master. There’s a lot of technique, patience, and attention to detail that goes into getting them just right. We wanted to challenge ourselves and create something that would really stand out.
Another important reason we chose to specialize in macarons was because we wanted to offer a dessert that people with gluten allergies and sensitivities could enjoy as well. We loved the idea of creating something beautiful and delicious that allowed more people to indulge. Our macarons eventually became one of our signature products, and we now have customers who specifically seek us out for them.
What makes us different is that we’re not just a dessert company—we bring the experience to you. We started with our traditional tent setup at events and have now expanded to include our mini dessert bus. That gives us the flexibility to participate in different types of events and bring our desserts directly into the communities we serve.
But more than anything, our customers are like family to us. We take a lot of pride in making everyone who interacts with our brand feel welcomed, appreciated, and loved. Whether someone is a first-time customer or someone who has supported us from the beginning, we want them to feel like they’re part of our family. For us, it’s never just about making a sale. It’s about creating connections and making people feel special.
I’m especially proud of the brand we’ve built because it has become so much more than selling desserts. It represents my journey, my creativity, and the willingness to take a chance on myself. We put a lot of thought and care into not only how our desserts taste, but how they look and how our customers feel when they experience our brand.
I want people to know that when they support our business, they’re supporting a small, women-owned company that was built from the ground up through hard work, faith, and determination. We’re constantly learning, creating, and finding new ways to make our desserts special.
At the end of the day, we want people to come for the dessert but leave feeling like they were welcomed into our family. And, of course, hopefully leave with a box of their favorite macarons!
Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
I would just love for people to know that we’re always excited to meet new customers and welcome them into our dessert family! We’re a small, women-owned business, and every person who supports us truly means so much to us.
If you’re looking for us, you can find us every Thursday and Friday on Broad Street, at Broad and Ontario, right in front of Temple University Hospital. Stop by, say hello, and grab yourself something sweet! Whether it’s one of our famous macarons, a cheesecake, cookies, or one of our other treats, we’d love to see you.
And if you see our dessert bus, don’t be shy,come say hi! We love meeting the people who make this journey possible and being part of the community we call home.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://1984-cakes.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/1984_cakes?obrf=MW41amxuNWsxZzk1ZQ==
