Gower College Swansea Business student Heledd Hunt is busy juggling her Level 3 studies with running her own company.
Heledd started her business – Hels Bakes Cakes - in September 2022, catering for events such as birthday parties. As a fluent Welsh speaker and one of the College’s Welsh Ambassadors, Heledd was also recently asked to cater for Welsh Week events across the campus, where 250 of her delicious cupcakes were on the menu.
Heledd also works part-time in a Llandeilo café called Lolfa, supplying them with a range of sweet treats including brownies, cupcakes, and blondies which are snapped up by customers.
“I’ve had a love of baking from a young age,” says Heledd. “But it was while working in the café that I began to realise how much people really love cakes and this encouraged me to turn my passion for baking into a business. What can be better than earning money doing something I love?”
Juggling full-time studies and her baking business can be a struggle at times so Heledd has to make sure she doesn’t commit to too many orders during the week (although she has lots of late nights baking!)
“My advice for other budding entrepreneurs would be to find your niche - your passion - and just go for it,” says Heledd. “There is nothing holding you back and once you have started, it’s onwards and upwards from there! I would also advise them to take advantage of social media as a way of getting yourself out there. Spending a little bit of time on that every day will help to build your brand and will definitely pay off in the long run.”
After finishing College, Heledd hopes to open her own café, selling her own bakes along with a full food and drinks menu. She also envisions holding themed nights and collaborating with other local small businesses to have pop up shops on the premises.
“Studying business at College has been really beneficial,” she says. “It’s allowed me to gain a lot more knowledge about the practicalities of running a successful enterprise.”