Check Out Dara Pacheco’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dara Pacheco.

Dara, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I am grateful that I have a large, supportive family that always had potlucks and food around. I don’t remember going to many family functions as an adult without some sort of food in hand, which, for me, usually consisted of desserts. Over the years they all graciously suffered through many less than ideal variations of cakes, pies, and cookies as I tweaked them and tried to perfect the recipes. I feel like that is where it all started for me….making food for family and friends.

At the end of 2018, I had a family friend offer to pay me to make a cake for their wedding vow renewal ceremony. Not long after that, another family member asked if they could pay me to make a cake for their friend’s birthday.

After a number of other dessert requests came in over the course of the next few months, I found myself wondering if I should post something on Facebook just letting people know that I could make desserts for them for pay if they were interested. Shortly after that, I set up a website so people had a place to go to see what I offered and it all kind of took off from there.

Honestly, I feel like the business kind of came to me rather than me seeking it out intentionally, almost like it snuck up on me and started dragging me along for a ride. It makes sense, looking back. This business rests at the intersection of a number of things that I have had my hands in for years such as art/creating, hospitality, customer service, and the love of all things tasty. I grew up loving to play with fake food and making inedible (likely poisonous) concoctions consisting of pine needles, spices from our kitchen, and squished little red berries off of the bushes in our yard. I had very supportive people around me encouraging me to explore the art world in whatever way I saw fit. As a result, I studied a wide range of mediums (i.e. watercolors, textiles, stained glass, clay, metal, etc.) and minored in art in college. Though I was pretty quiet and shy as a child, as an adult, I found that I loved hosting and was drawn to a variety of customer service jobs over the course of the years which I feel like helped me come out of my shell a bit and become more comfortable working with the public. I also hold a strong belief that there can be incredible power and significance in simple offerings, such as making a meal for a grieving family or surprising a neighbor with an unexpected sweet treat. For me, the business hinges on all of these things.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I don’t know that I would call the ride “smooth” but I would say that it has been a surprisingly natural transition for me. Prior to this business taking off I had been going through a very difficult season in my life and found myself just trying to find my place. I left my five year tenure as a social worker at the end of 2012, following a long season of attending funerals nearly every 2 months for 4 ½ years and culminating with my sister committing suicide. Those personal experiences on top of the strains of the profession I was in resulted in me needing to take a break. I spent the next 3 years exploring a handful of jobs while I took some time to process through grief. I worked in a few customer service positions. I volunteered at the Kansas City Clay Guild for a number of years, which proved to be very stabilizing for me during that season, and reminded me of my love of working with clay.

In 2014, I pursued working with that medium, even doing some art shows, but in the end, I determined it wasn’t the direction I wanted to go. At the end of 2015, I started work as a bookkeeper a couple of days a week and continue to work at that job currently. Aside from bookkeeping, the other jobs just felt like they didn’t fit. There were some components that felt right but others that were draining to me. That’s why when the bakery business started to gain traction, I was slightly taken off guard at how natural it all felt like the experiences I’d had up to that point were all preparing me for this role.

That being said, yes, there are struggles. The art of navigating a business that is classified as a cottage industry has been challenging. In addition, running a business by yourself can threaten to leave you with an unfinished to-do list at the end of each day. All of that has challenged my ability to prioritize and scale down when necessary. Taxes! Oh man! If it were not for my extremely gifted husband who runs his own businesses and has an incredible ability to navigate the tax world, I might have thrown in the towel at this point.

Contact Info:

• Email: dara@addtothebeautybakery.com
• Website: https://www.addtothebeautybakery.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/addtothebeautybakery/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/addtothebeautybakery
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/add-to-the-beauty-bakery-kansas-city