Cute Cakes & Co is a Brisbane-based, online bakery creating Instagram-worthy cakes and treats to discerning customers through their Shopify sales site. 

The business is rapidly expanding into multiple locations with a hybrid model of centralised and distributed manufacturing/finishing. New staff and greater production volumes naturally put pressure on the business' central mission to deliver a top-notch product to a discerning customer base every single time.

Cute Cakes and Co’s owner, Amanda Sullivan initially came to us with a simple goal: help her find ways to have the business be less reliant on herself as the central point of knowledge and expertise. 

Given the nature of the online ordering system (provided by Shopify), new orders may be received at any time throughout the day. At that time, it was essential for a skilled person (usually Amanda herself) to manually review and add these orders into the processing pipeline for handling by staff. 

However, if that person was unable to process an order, a risk existed of that order being missed, which in turn created a critical gap in the manufacturing and finishing process. This highlights just one of the challenges facing businesses like Cute Cakes & Co that often depend solely on one individual … the classic Key Person Risk.

In order to gain insights into the day-to-day operations, business intricacies, and opportunities for improvements at Cute Cakes & Co, we initially undertook a comprehensive Business Process Analysis to examine the business model through a review, report and recommendations project.

Our examination, encompassing the Current State Analysis, delved into Cute Cakes & Co's organisational structure, operational processes, and overall performance. Noteworthy strengths were identified in their use of technology platforms including Shopify, Xero, and Tanda for order and resource management. We also found a few areas for improvement stemming from manual processes and communication challenges.

Building on these findings, we proposed strategic changes to enhance staff management, optimise email handling, and implement a tailor-made production workflow system. These proposed measures were aimed at enhancing order processing and overall efficiency, aligning with the business's growth objectives.

From here, we mapped and built a custom production workflow system. Our team devised a comprehensive solution catering to the different needs of management and the various staff roles within the bakery. Recognising the diverse workflows and responsibilities of different groups, we ensured consistency in visual design and layout, with layers of adaptable information. This approach aimed to streamline operations and foster efficiency while accommodating the evolving demands of the business.

Through our standard process analysis approach and working closely with Cute Cakes & Co’s owner, Amanda and the baking team we were able to define a workflow process that would work seamlessly for both management and staff. 

Given the highly manual nature of the existing process, we recognised that human factors and change management were critical to the success of the project. We carefully considered these factors and implemented measures to ensure a smooth transition to the new system.

With our proprietary Business Apps Powered by ciSUITE: software we were able to provide Cute Cakes & Co with an economical solution to build and deploy a tailored system on a short timetable. 

• Cloud-based Service - via secure Australian servers
• Custom deployment, using our free off-the-shelf iPad app
• Production Workflow front-end customised for each role
• Custom workflow logic to match the unique requirements of the business
• Integrated, custom stock control system (for baked product components and decorations)
• Internal stock ordering module 
• Administration system to manage products and features
• Automation / integration with Shopify
• Printing to Star Micronics (TSP100III) thermal printers for cake tickets and delivery dockets
• Off-the-shelf hardware (iPads and/or Mac devices)

The Cute Cakes & Co production workflow system has significantly eased the daily operations for Amanda and her team across the production and retail locations, providing her with a much-needed sense of assurance and peace of mind.

The robust and flexible interface of the iOS and Android mobile apps, coupled with the straightforward web management system, enables management to effortlessly update and add items on the go. This seamless functionality allows users to carry out their essential tasks without encountering unnecessary hurdles, resulting in streamlined workflows and reduced manual labour.

Visit Cute Cakes & Co to get your cake on!