Mouth-watering cupcake flavors such as root beer float, banana split, orange pineapple and thin mint await visitors to the newest addition at the Boro Plaza Shopping Center in Waynesboro.
They all may be found at The Cupcake Gypsy, 114 Walnut Street, Suite 4, which will be open Thursdays through Sundays.
Mother-daughter owners Bonnie Renard and Katie Householder, respectively, are looking forward to welcoming customers to their new storefront.
The business started as a food trailer last summer. “This wasn’t supposed to happen. We were going to keep wandering around,” according to Householder.
“We were never in the same place twice. That was our goal,” Renard added.
“At the end of June we did a pop-up tent at a farmer’s market in Smithsburg,” Renard said. “We thought we’d go set up for fun.” The duo sold out – 15 dozen cupcakes – in the first half hour. “We thought, ‘We’re really on to something’ and continued at events in Smithsburg, where Renard lives, and in Waynesboro, Householder’s home.
Renard credits their successful outing to the fact that the icing-topped treats were a food truck item no one else was offering. “Coming out of COVID, the food truck industry took off. You could always find a barbecue truck, but you couldn’t really find desserts. We also thought with the possibility that COVID could come around again it was a business that could stay viable – the way we were doing it.”
During that time the bakers increased their flour use from one 50-pound bag per week to one 50-pound bag every day or two.
“We were using a commissary kitchen – working out of a commercial kitchen on off hours,” said Householder. “When they were closed, we’d go in which made it difficult- baking until three in the morning and then getting up to decorate and head to events. We decided to get our own place, but we were still only going to do the trailer. When we were rolling around like a gypsy at every event we would go to, people would always ask, ‘Where’s your storefront?’”
The Cupcake Gypsy owners moved forward by setting up a kitchen at the suite on Walnut Street that is now home. “We hosted a pop-up event here on Veteran’s Day and the evening went way better than we could have hoped,” noted Householder.
“This all happened very quickly,” added Renard, who operated the Smithsburg Market with her husband, John, for 16 years, along with help from Katie and her husband, Matthew. “The last few years, we expanded to custom-decorated cakes. Then we had the opportunity to sell the store and we did. I thought I would never do this again but cake decorating was the part of the business that I liked the most. A door opened, then it closed, we locked it and then it was off the hinges and we had to go through it. Things fell into place.”
The business, which also features custom-decorated cakes and other desserts, including pies, and holiday specialties, will hold its grand opening Thursday, Dec. 9 through Sunday, Dec. 12. Hours are 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. “Our normal business hours will be the same as the grand opening and we’re also offering holiday hours starting Dec. 13 through Christmas – Monday through Friday from 4 to 8 p.m. and weekends, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.,” noted Householder.
“We’re having all kinds of giveaways and offerings at our opening with a grand prize of a free cupcake (your choice of flavor) each week for a year,” she added. “We’ll be decorated for Christmas, with a photo-op for kids and their families.”
“We feel like this was meant to be,” Householder said. “Things happened that made us stop and say, ‘How can this be?’ with her mother adding, ‘Everything fell into place beautifully.’”
For more information or to place an order, visit The Cupcake Gypsy on Facebook.com.
