First off, let me tell you that I love baked goods! So a year ago when someone asked if I’d be interested in crafting a media release about a brand new bakery in town, I was all over it. I was dying to try out their malasadas and ensaymadas, the latter which has a special place in my heart being a Filipino confection.
Turns out, I knew one of the founders, Davion Tran, through our close-knit Orange County social media circles. But wait, wasn’t he a personal trainer? This made the store even more intriguing. A month before Paderia Bakehouse’s opening, the buzz was already building and Instagram foodies all over OC and beyond anxiously awaited the opening. On the menu, just three items: Malasadas, Ensaymadas and Cookies!
Flash Forward a year later. Paderia is a hit! They often run out of their baked goods and there are lines out the door. They have added other delicious items to the menu as well and are contemplating expanding their operations. I did a short interview with Davion about Entrepreneurship and I am happy to share his answers with you.
MARCIE TAYLOR (MT) Tell me about yourself and what you did before opening your business, Paderia Bakehouse?
DAVION TRAN (DT) I’m a 30 years old entrepreneur and have been operating my own businesses for 10 years and counting. Before Paderia Bakehouse, I ran a fitness training business for 9 years. I started both businesses from the ground up.
MT: What challenges do you face as a small business owner and how do you overcome them?
DT: There are many challenges as a small business owner. It’s hard to name just a few, but some of the top ones include staying innovative, acquiring new customers, and how to continue growth.
Staying innovative requires a lot of constant market analysis and research. The key is to never settle and always hold a high standard for the concept and values. Acquiring customers comes down to making tough decisions when it comes to marketing and how much to spend and when to scale that spending. You don’t want to go all out without gaining a good ROI from the investment. As for continual growth, it requires cultivating the right team members and trusting them to be able to handle daily operations. That allows for us, the owners, to step back and focus on things to develop the business further.
MT: What are you excited about in the near future, in your industry and in the future of Paderia?
DT: The industry is always evolving and new concepts are always popping up which keeps it exciting in itself. What I’m most excited about Paderia is our plans to continue growing the brand and seeing what the future has in store for us. There’s a lot of potential and opportunities. We’ll have to wait and see which path we take as a company.
Follow Paderia on Instagram @paderiabakehouse and visit paderiabakehouse.com
Paderia is located at 18279 Brookhurst St Suite 1, Fountain Valley, CA 92708
