Felicia Howard, owner of Felicia’s Cake Factory, decorates a cake for a graduation celebration on Friday at her storefront in downtown Macon.
The woman behind Felicia’s Cake Factory was never supposed to end up owning a bakery.
Felicia Howard, the woman trying to make her customers’ “sweet dreams come true,” was working in Macon as a respiratory therapist when she picked up cake decorating in her spare time. It eventually grew into a business in 2014.
Now, Howard is selling made-from-scratch cupcakes and desserts out of her own store.
“I really enjoy helping people in the healthcare field as well, but when I started decorating, I found it very relaxing,” she said. “I didn’t really realize that I had that talent.”
Once Howard graduated from Macon State College, now Middle Georgia State University, she worked three 12-hour shifts a week and was looking for a hobby.
She settled on desserts.
Howard said the first cake she ever made was terrible, but she kept practicing until she found recipes that her family and friends enjoyed.
“I kind of kept honing on to that craft, and lo and behold, a few years later, friends, family started asking me to do their kids’ birthday cakes after they saw my kids’ birthday cakes,” she said.
Once she decided to move her business into a store, she drove around town until she found a location she liked. Howard contacted the manager and put down a deposit at 365 Third St.
Walking down Third Street, Felicia’s Cake Factory is easily spotted. The store is covered in pink because that is Howard’s favorite color. There are flowers and decorations surrounded by fake cakes and desserts to draw customers into the shop that smells like freshly baked cookies. Howard said she is a serious “girly girl.”
While Howard enjoys the area around her store, including a park across the street, she hopes to see more foot traffic in the coming months and new businesses in the three vacant buildings on her block.
“We’re continuing to get new customers that are coming through the door stating that they just had an opportunity to try our product at an event that they were at, and they loved it,” Howard said.
On a daily basis, the store sells cupcakes, cake pops, chocolate covered marshmallows and more sweet treats. People can order cakes and other goodies online or by calling the store at (478) 703-5020.
Howard said they also have a suggestion box for customers to help determine what items they keep in stock for the storefront.
One of the larger hurdles Howard faces is the holiday season. She always worries about having enough staff to produce enough cakes for the orders, but she said it always works out.
Ella Williams, Howard’s assistant baker, said she has been working with Howard since March, and she loves her job.
“She’s a good boss. I love her to death — like a sister,” Williams said. “She teaches me what I don’t know. She trusts me, and I come in and do stuff that she needs me to do even when I’m off.”
Miracle Cohen, a student at Wesleyan College, said she has been eating Felicia’s cupcakes since she was a kid and enjoys working at the shop.
“She works with my college schedule, so it’s really nice to just be here,” she said.
The customers who walk through the doors every day are the reason she continues to make her sweet treats, Howard said.
“There’s days when I decorate cakes, and they come in and they look at them and say, ‘Oh my god, this is so pretty. I don’t want to cut it.’ I’m like, ‘I spent time on this you better cut it,’” Howard said laughing. “When you see the smile and the joy that you put on your customer’s face when they taste something — it looks really good and tastes really good — it just keeps me going.”
