The smell of sweet treats drifts into your nose.

However, it’s not the usual old and stale bakery items. 

What you smell is something much more delightful and fresh.

It’s at the heart of the bakery business of freshman Shifa Shaikh who started a business last summer, that sells homemade custom desserts such as cakes, cookies, cupcakes, and much more.

“I started baking when I was five with my mom, and began baking by myself when I was seven or eight years old,” Shifa said. “I mostly learned from watching YouTube, and I started it to share my treats with others. Baking is very calming for me, and I love doing it.” 

Shifa usually gets two to three orders a month, each one taking several hours.  

“My number one favorite thing to make is cakes because I love experimenting with them and trying to put my own twist on a design I found really cool,” Shifa said. “I also love making cake-pops; they are so satisfying to make.”

For many people, a love of cooking often begins at home, but for Shifa, it started somewhere else.

“I was inspired by my kindergarten teacher, she was a family friend already, and I got lucky to get her as my teacher as well,” Shifa said. “She baked for us on special occasions. She also held a cupcake decorating class, that’s when I really got interested. Without her, I would have never continued in baking.”

While Shifa’s baking business is slowly growing compared to other small businesses, it’s already having an impact according to her mom Nausheen Shaikh.

“She has a lot of potential and this is just the beginning of a lot of happy customers and awesome confections,” Nausheen said. “This business has given Shifa a great deal of confidence and taught her financial skills needed to run a successful business.”

Her ability in the kitchen goes beyond her customers as even her friends are impressed with baking skills. 

“The amount of time she dedicates to her business is what inspires me,” friend Shreya Enjeti said. “No matter how difficult it is, she strives to bake the most perfect desserts I have ever tasted.”

This doesn’t happen by accident, as according to Shifa’s mom, perfection is the goal.

“Shifa treats every order with detail and passion,” Nausheen Shaikh said. “From a big cake to cookies, every confection is made from scratch with quality ingredients.”

Her desserts are definitely Instagram-worthy in the eye’s of her friend Shreya Enjeti.

“Just scrolling through her Instagram, I sense the amount of passion she possesses, the passion that creates these amazing desserts,” Enjeti said. “For example, her cakes are so fun and decorative; it feels as though I’m ordering from a professional baker.”

Just a year into her business, Shifa doesn’t have plans on stopping any time soon. 

“I plan to continue in the future,” she said. “My plan is to keep this business as a side job while working my other one when I’m older. Until then, this is my job.”