Sprinkles: Leading a Sweet Trend
Case Study 3: Sprinkles: Leading a Sweet Trend
Candace and Charles Nelson are the co-owners of Sprinkles, a cupcake-only bakery. Candace and Charles have proven that high-end ingredients in a very stylish setting, can challenge the low-carb food craze and get people to stand in lines that stretch out the door and around the block. Sprinkles got their big break when Oprah Winfrey had Candace bring 300 cupcakes that were featured on Breakfast with Oprah, which led to national recognition basically overnight. Sprinkle’s offers 24 custom flavored cupcakes that are decorated with a “minimalists” touch, a sleek buttercream frosting and little decoration to differ them from store look-alikes.
Candace and Charles Nelson showed many entrepreneurial characteristics in this case. They showed risk taking behaviors that resulted in a great opportunity for themselves. Many characteristics of a classical entrepreneur were apparent in the Sprinkles case with the Nelsons. Candace and Charles showed their self-confidence and belief in themselves and their business by quitting their lucrative careers in investment banking and switched to spending long hours in the kitchen. Their confidence to start a Cupcake business in L.A. during a time when the United States was still on their “South Beach Diet,” low carb craze, also showed their tolerance for ambiguity. Entrepreneurs are risk takers; they tolerate situations with high degrees of uncertainty. Nelson faced skepticism from the beginning, she was turned away from wedding shower guests who feared overloading on carbs, and even her landlord second guessed her cupcake-only business, by asking “But what else will you be selling?” High energy and passion is crucial for any small business to make its break and be successful. Nelson’s high energy level showed when she manned her ovens for six hours to come up with 300 cupcakes, before catching an overnight flight to Chicago for the Breakfast with Oprah show, which surely paid
Candace and Charles Nelson are the co-owners of Sprinkles, a cupcake-only bakery. Candace and Charles have proven that high-end ingredients in a very stylish setting, can challenge the low-carb food craze and get people to stand in lines that stretch out the door and around the block. Sprinkles got their big break when Oprah Winfrey had Candace bring 300 cupcakes that were featured on Breakfast with Oprah, which led to national recognition basically overnight. Sprinkle’s offers 24 custom flavored cupcakes that are decorated with a “minimalists” touch, a sleek buttercream frosting and little decoration to differ them from store look-alikes.
Candace and Charles Nelson showed many entrepreneurial characteristics in this case. They showed risk taking behaviors that resulted in a great opportunity for themselves. Many characteristics of a classical entrepreneur were apparent in the Sprinkles case with the Nelsons. Candace and Charles showed their self-confidence and belief in themselves and their business by quitting their lucrative careers in investment banking and switched to spending long hours in the kitchen. Their confidence to start a Cupcake business in L.A. during a time when the United States was still on their “South Beach Diet,” low carb craze, also showed their tolerance for ambiguity. Entrepreneurs are risk takers; they tolerate situations with high degrees of uncertainty. Nelson faced skepticism from the beginning, she was turned away from wedding shower guests who feared overloading on carbs, and even her landlord second guessed her cupcake-only business, by asking “But what else will you be selling?” High energy and passion is crucial for any small business to make its break and be successful. Nelson’s high energy level showed when she manned her ovens for six hours to come up with 300 cupcakes, before catching an overnight flight to Chicago for the Breakfast with Oprah show, which surely paid