Meet the Business Owner: Carmen Connell from Dash Cakes & Espresso Bar
Your AMP Lane coffee and cake fix, Carmen from Dash Cakes & Espresso Bar has your morning caffeine and afternoon pick-me-ups covered. She’s the creative cake maker who turned her hobby into a successful business.
AlburyCBD: Tell us a little about yourself, Carmen. What’s something about you people might not know?
Carmen: Before moving fulltime into the hospitality industry, I spent most of my working life in real estate. I have been decorating cakes as a hobby – long before the term side hustle was a thing! It was after my husband passed away in 2015 that I decided to follow my passion, and I’ve never looked back.
AlburyCBD: Tell us about your business – what’s your why and what do you love about running your business?
Carmen: I love to create cakes that bring joy to those who trust me to be a part of their special event. I also like to think that we have created a little oasis of escape in our hideaway laneway location where people can feel comfortable and escape their stresses, if only for a few moments over a coffee and a slice of cake. Our regulars are amazing and there’s always conversation and a laugh to be had in the five-minute break just to make the day a little sweeter.
AlburyCBD: What’s a challenge you’ve had to overcome in business?
Carmen: Sticking to a plan and not deviating from the core values of the business. This business is not a traditional hospitality venue and doesn’t fit into any pre-existing business model boxes, so sticking it out and proving that it is a commercially viable business model was tough
AlburyCBD: What would you be doing if you weren’t running Dash Cakes & Espresso Bar?
Carmen: I can’t imagine doing anything else right now! We have always dreamed of buying some land somewhere, on a river or a creek and building a container home, and then adding extra units and running it as a farm stay B&B, so maybe that.
AlburyCBD: What do you love about being in the Albury CBD?
Carmen: The people. The Albury business community is an amazing support network and we are very lucky to have some wonderful small business owners so very close. I love that about AMP Lane. We have such a great little community of businesses.
You can find Dash Cakes & Espresso Bar at 3 AMP Lane. Stop in for a coffee and a sweet treat or order a cake for your next special occasion via admin@dashcakes.com.au or dashcakes.com.au. Keep up with everything delicious at Dash on Instagram @dashespressoandcakebites.
