The Manchester Enterprise
A Heritage Newspaper
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Bakery owner finds calling at 'Sex' premiere
Decorating technique draws Hollywood, U-M clientele to Manchester
By Alexandra Sondeen, Special Writer
PUBLISHED: June 19, 2008
The Manchester Bakery has long been a spot for local residents to gather in the morning and share donuts, coffee and gossip. But the bakery is quickly becoming known for much more.
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Owner Melanie Weidmayer bought the bakery almost three years ago. Though she has a bachelor's degree in business, she was never formally educated in the culinary arts.
"I haven't taken actual classes but I've been to conferences and you pick up a lot about the industry and make connections," she said.
In May, Weidmayer was asked to help decorate a cake for a private "Sex and the City" movie premiere party in Chicago with one of the city's bakers.
"She called me frantically because she got this order," Weidmayer said. "She's a European pastry chef not a decorator. She did the inside of the cake and I did all the decorating."
Weidmayer met the Chicago baker at a competition at the beginning of May. The competition was judged in part by cake artist Bronwen Weber, who has competed in eight Food Network challenges medaling in each and placing first more than once.
The competition was set at the Lincoln Park Zoo and had a theme of "On the Wild Side." Weidmayer entered the competition when a friend from Pillsbury requested she enter due to her signature decorating technique.
This technique creates the smooth look of a fondant-covered cake using whipped icing.
"People in this area do not like fondant but they love the look," Weidmayer said. "One thing I used to say a lot was 'don't sacrifice the taste of your cake for the look of it.'"
Weidmayer used this technique in the competition for her three-tier cake. Though she didn't place, she said her cake stumped Weber, who often works with fondant.
"She couldn't figure out what medium I used to frost the cake," she said.
Weber also took notice of another aspect of Weidmayer's cake that separated it from other competitors' cakes.
"The other thing she complemented me on, which a lot of other contestants did not do, is that I used different mediums."
Her cake included chocolate and pulled sugar, all of which Weidmayer made from scratch. It was her first time working with the ingredients.
"I like pulling out the creative part of me and working with it," she said.
Since purchasing the bakery, Weidmayer has concentrated on producing high quality products and removing the focus from donuts and cookies.
"I love decorating cakes," she said. "That's where my passion is. I want to do cakes."
Weidmayer has been decorating cakes since 1996. Her first attempt at decorating was a Bugs Bunny birthday cake for a friend's son.
"It took me literally all day," she said. "It went to the party and within five to 10 minutes it was already cut and I was just devastated."
Weidmayer said she has always had an entrepreneurial spirit and never thought she would spend her life working for someone else.
"I've always enjoyed baking and wanted to own my own business someday. This was available, it was close and it was in something that I wanted to do," she said.
Weidmayer said that when she first bought the bakery, she received one cake order every two or three weeks. She now fills about 20 orders a week.
"Last week I pumped out 16 cakes and a wedding cake, all within six or seven hours," she said. "Every time I do a cake I keep getting a little bit better at it. It's been a learning experience and I always challenge myself to do better."
Weidmayer said she doesn't usually mind that hungry customers often demolish her hard work soon after it is finished. She said she always tries to get pictures for that reason.
"I'm just as proud about what's inside the cake as what's outside of it."
Weidmayer also prides herself on the fact that she doesn't adorn cakes with plastic toys and figurines unless the customer provides it.
"I see the grocery store cakes," she said. "I see plastic on those cakes and lots of airbrushing and I think it makes them look cheap. They've got to pick off all that plastic before slicing into the cake when they can slice right into mine."
The Manchester Bakery now has cake fans across Michigan coming to Manchester for Weidmayer's natural talents.
"A lot of people go to parties that have our cake and find out where it's from," she said. "That's where our business has really grown."
Weidmayer now has regular customers that are devoted to her cake and will drive to Manchester despite the record gas prices.
"There's a woman that comes from Brighton whose husband has always hated cake, but he had our cake somewhere and loved it," Weidmayer said. "She drives all the way from Brighton to get cake from us and has us write 'Because I love you' on it."
Weidmayer said she loves the response she gets from her customers.
"It's nice when people come in and hug you because they are so excited about their cake," she said. "It's more personal and it means a lot."
Weidmayer has also had success with her wholesale products. She has a supplier's contract with the University of Michigan, which has also just recently discovered her cakes. She said the university has told her that she will be their only cake-provider.
Despite her higher quality products, the mass-produced products in grocery stores still give Weidmayer some serious competition. But she isn't letting the competition beat her down. She is working on a new line of gluten-free cakes to add to her inventory. She already has sugar-free cakes and whipped icing.
Another new concept she's looking to introduce in the village is sculpted cakes, where the cake is cut and decorated to look life-like. These cakes were made popular by the show "Ace of Cakes" on the Food Network.
Weidmayer said she is happy in Manchester despite some of the small-town challenges.
"I'm here and I'm not going anywhere."
Alexandra Sondeen is a college intern with The Manchester Enterprise. She can be reached at asondeen@emu.edu.
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