Meet the Bradford Farmers’ Market’s newest vendor: SweetHeart Cakes and Co. (9 photos)

As the youngest and newest vendor at the Bradford Farmers' Market, Alexa Paulos of SweetHeart Cakes & Co. says she has been selling out of her delicious, tasty treats every single week.

Originally from Bradford, Paulos is 21 years old and sells a variety of cakes, cookies, donuts, brownies, and delectable pastries.

Paulos founded SweetHeart Cakes & Co. in May 2021, the same month the market reopened for in-person shopping.

“On the opening weekend I was so nervous,” she admits. “I had no idea what to expect and I had been up all-night baking to provide customers the freshest possible desserts." 

She says she has been overwhelmed by the support of not only family and friends who have come out of their way to support her, but the loyal returning customers who have bought from her every week.

Although a newly registered company, Paulos has been baking since she was a little girl and has always had a love for food. The name of her company stems from a term of endearment her parents (Nadia and John Paulos) called her growing up.

“I was never a picky eater,” she says. “To this day, [I] will try almost anything and everything."

Some of her best memories incorporate food, "whether it was me sitting beside the stove with my grandfather waiting for the food to be finished, being made and tasting it, or travelling around England and trying fresh fish and chips or getting that late night Mcflurry at Mcdonalds.”

Paulos says she upped her baking skills by watching many Netflix shows about the food industry and started following other bakers on Instagram. But it was not until late 2019 when she began to take her baking more seriously.

“I was mostly limited to maybe the occasional baked good and baking for holidays,” she says. “But it was always something I looked forward to and filled me with a sense of joy and accomplishment."

Paulos describes herself as once an ‘odd child’ who was shy, but showed an entrepreneurial spirit, playing make believe games as a sales person, and hosting garage sales. 

As a teenager, Paulos was very involved in high school extra-curriculars. She was on the athletic council at Holy Trinity School and the cross-country team. She was also the treasurer for the prom committee. 

“Organizing things and coming up with ideas have always been something that I have loved to do,” she adds.

After high school, Paulos attended Western University where she earned her degree in Business Management & Organization Studies with a specialization in accounting. During that time, she also launched and became the founder and president of the campus club ‘Women in Fitness’. Within two years, it became one of Western’s top 15 clubs with almost 170 members.

“Besides baking, fitness has been a huge passion of mine for the past eight years,” she says. “I am very passionate about living a healthy lifestyle (and yes that includes eating treats) and it is something I encourage everyone to do as it has major mental and physical benefits."

Paulos's goal is to eventually make ‘lunch box cakes’ a six-inch cake that feeds two to four people.

“They are both cute and tasty,” she says. “For me, cakes represent celebration… if you think about it, they are a focus at almost everything we celebrate: weddings, birthdays, graduations, retirements… they are a symbol of happiness in my eyes and I think bringing cakes down to a smaller scale is the perfect way to celebrate the little wins on a regular week-to-week basis.”

Paulos says her focus for the business right now is 'flavours' while continuing to grow SweetHeart Cakes & Co., creaing treats that are unique and bring joy to people’s faces.

“[I]f it isn’t flavourful, then what is the point?” she says. “Food is everything and nothing at the same time; in one way, we only need it to function and live, but… it is also everything – every holiday we gather around food – it makes us feel warm [and] brings us together.”

“Good food has the power to ignite a feeling and that is what I want my treats to do,” she adds. “Whether it brings you back to your childhood, creates a new memory for you, or even if you just get excited about visiting me at the market every Saturday.”

Paulos wishes to thank not only her friends and family who have supported her new business, but to community members who have tasted her treats from the market and sent her  encouraging messages along the way.

She also would like to thank Laura Vree, Manager of the Bradford Farmers'  Market, for giving her the opportunity to share her passion with the community.

“I sometimes am not so confident in myself and in my abilities and I struggle with anxiety and stress on a daily basis [so] knowing that they like my stuff makes me feel a lot more proud of what I have accomplished," she says.

To view more of SweeHeart Cakes & Co. creations, follow them on Instagram: @sweetheartcakesco