About
Us
Hi! My name is Abby and I’m the owner of Sweet & Fair. The first thing you need to know about me is that I love good food!
Before starting my own business in 2020, I worked as a pastry chef at Jesmond Dene House in Newcastle, and more recently I gained a Level 3 NVQ Diploma in Patisserie & Confectionery from Gateshead College.
But as well as being an avid baker, I am a qualified nutritionist, having received a BSc (Hons) in Food & Human Nutrition from Newcastle University and a Masters in Public Health Nutrition from Northumbria University. So I know how to make cakes, and (if you ask) I can tell you all about how to enjoy them as part of a healthy diet!
I also have a Level 2 Food Hygiene certificate and our kitchen is registered with the local council, so rest assured you're in safe hands.
Read on to find out the story of how Sweet & Fair began and how we got to where we are today!
Our Story
The idea of Sweet & Fair originated in 2012, as a partnership between two friends. Having regularly held charity cake sales together whilst at school, my friend Charlotte and I decided to continue with our passion for baking by creating delicious treats from our parents’ homes to sell at local farmers’ markets and food festivals. It was a fun but short-lived first foray into business, as plans for further education resulted in us living nearly 200 miles apart. But the love of baking continued.
Fast forward eight years and suddenly the dream of running my own business looked like it could again become a reality. I had recently become a homeowner (making it possible to run a food business from home) and had been furloughed from my job as a pastry chef, giving me time and freedom to pursue other interests.
I noticed that lockdown had created a demand for home food deliveries and luxury treats, so I took the leap and re-launched Sweet & Fair, though this time as a solo venture. I started selling homemade afternoon teas for delivery around Tyneside, and it quickly took off, thanks in part to an article about my business published by the Newcastle Chronicle, and kept me very busy!
As the seasons changed, I created new themed menus, and almost every Saturday I'd get up early to bake scones and pack up orders, and my husband would drive around the city delivering little boxes of luxury to homes across Newcastle, Gateshead, South Shields and beyond! It was wonderful to receive so much positive feedback from customers, and especially to be told by some that it was the best afternoon tea they'd ever had!
Since then, the business has had to adapt through various changes, with the pandemic coming to an end, and the reopening of restaurants and cafes reducing the demand for afternoon tea home deliveries. And on a personal level, in Autumn 2021 I became a first-time mum to a baby boy! After taking maternity leave, I decided to continue running my business on a part-time basis. I reduced the frequency of my afternoon tea deliveries, and slowly began to shift the focus towards catering for parties and events.
It has sometimes felt like a bit of a juggling act, but I feel very blessed to be able to run my own business from home, doing what I love and having the freedom to fit it around the joys and challenges of family life. In recent months, I have had the pleasure of providing food for some lovely events, including an afternoon tea celebration for 50 people, a table of over 300 mini desserts for a wedding, some three-tiered cakes and quite a few corporate buffet lunches!
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I'm excited to see what will come next, so if you're looking for catering or a cake for an upcoming event, please don't hesitate to get in touch!
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Love, Abby xx
