Best Home-Baker in Delhi in 2021: Chef Daizy Sangla of Bakez by Daizy

Not everyone has the courage of conviction to follow their dreams, but the few that pursue their heart’s desire, are destined for success – no matter how long and difficult the journey to get there. Chef Daizy Sangla, gemologist turned baker, is the perfect example of one who chose to pursue her passion, making a tremendous success of it. 10 years into launching her label, Bakez by Daizy (BbD), she can be counted in the list of the best home-bakers in Delhi in 2021. She is all set to take her business to the next level by launching it virtually and introducing an exciting vertical – pan-India delivery of select items from the menu.

Here are snippets from an exclusive conversation with Chef Daizy Sangla, the best home-baker in Delhi in 2021:

Tell us about your journey so far. What was your driving force behind creating Bakez by Daizy?

I have been passionate about baking since I was a young girl in school, but because I had studied Commerce, I decided to pursue a degree in Gemology at GIA (Gemological Institute of America). Baking as a business happened purely by chance! I began by baking for my friends and family, and they pushed me to do what made me happy. The biggest reward for me was whenever a client shared how delighted their kids were after eating their cakes – my heart would do a little happy dance! I just love kids and their feedback has always been most important to me. When I began, I promised myself that I would let my work do the talking, so I have never believed in paid marketing.

Your brand is synonymous with serving healthy yet delicious baked goodies – how do you manage this delicate balance?

I am very particular about the final products that leave my kitchen. The kids in my house are my first testers and tasters – I wouldn’t want them to have something unhealthy or overly sweet, hence each recipe is added on the menu only after multiple trials once I am personally convinced.

What is your signature offering and why do you feel it is the most popular one of all?

It has to be NUTELLA! I won’t deny it – I am synonymous with that jar for most of my clients. When I began, it was one of the spreads relished only when we travelled during holidays – a fancy item served in the lavish breakfast spread. Now, almost all my goodies have that particular flavour included because I am not allowed to serve anything sans Nutella!

What is the USP of BbD – the one thing that sets you apart from competitors?

I believe what sets me apart is the fact that all the baking is handled completely by me, which means I take only limited orders, as I need to do justice to each one. My motto is to ensure quality over quantity. Everything is baked fresh and new flavours are added every few weeks because I love to experiment!

You promise to deliver Pan-India. How do you maintain the delicious freshness of baked goods while delivering across the country?

Every item is baked fresh, and keeping in mind that we don’t use any preservatives, we take extra care. After a lot of delivery trials, we are now finally ready for pan India delivery. For obvious reasons, the menu isn’t as vast as it is for Delhi-NCR, but slowly we hope to spread a taste of BbD everywhere!

What kind of hampers do you offer?

We offer a lot of options so clients can curate their own hampers as per their budget and the occasion they need the hamper for. The idea is for them to be able to choose goodies that will be appreciated by the receivers – “no restrictions”, is the motto we swear by!

Do you have special offerings for seasons or festivals?

Yes, we try to update our menu as per the season, like mangoes have a special place during summers and strawberries during winters. Since we use no preserves, we only use flavours that are fresh. For festivals and special days like Diwali / Holi / Mother’s Day / Father’s Day, we try to offer personalised or customised options for limited periods of time only.

What is your policy for ordering in bulk? How much advance notice is required?

Our policy is quite simple. We encourage clients to order as soon as possible because it’s a one woman show, and I take in only those I can give 100% to. We take a token amount in advance to confirm bulk orders, but don’t offer any discounts as we don’t compromise on quality.

What are the challenges you have faced in your business so far and how have you overcome them?

Challenges are present in large numbers in every field, especially food, because it’s not easy to satisfy the taste-buds and needs of everyone. First and foremost, it is important to refuse clients too – if something doesn’t make you happy, you must learn to say no. When I first started professionally, more clients would ask for fondant cakes than the cakes I made, and I would apologise to them with a heavy heart, but then I realised cakes are what we consume – yes looks do matter but taste is of utmost importance.

Tell us about your popular baking workshops, what do you include in them?

My workshops for kids are like a little party for them. They are aimed at age groups 3-12 years and are conducted over 3 hours. They wear a chef’s attire and bake – in the first break they have some freshly churned ice creams while watching some of their favourite cartoons. Then the frosting bit takes place, followed by snack time, where they are served freshly-cooked snacks like nuggets / Maggie etc., and lastly, we distribute certificates and they are sent home with all their baked goodies.

Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, everything has changed. So, I started virtual online classes for an hour each. My niece is seriously interested in baking, and would curate recipes and conduct trials. She hosted the online sessions, under my guidance and we named it ‘By kids…for Kids’, as it was held by my kid while lots of kids learnt, and the proceeds of the classes were used to feed underprivileged kids as we tied up with an NGO (Spread a Smile India), hence ‘For Kids’. It was just a little way of teaching the new generation the concept of sharing!

How often do you host these workshops and how can people sign up for them?

Classes are held regularly during the summer break, once a week. Confirmations are sent via Whatsapp, and we take only limited students because we need to give our full attention to all.

What makes you popular with mommies and kids alike?

Well that would be best answered by them. But I feel it’s my approach, I am easily reachable as I take care of all orders personally and I like to jot down minor details of what the clients want, and try my best to deliver it to them. Sometimes, there are complaints of not answering their calls, but while baking it’s impossible to talk, so I ask them to leave a Whatsapp message and I promise to get back as soon as possible.

Since you share such a special bond with children, are you also associated with them in other ways?

Yes, we have held a couple of baking classes at Ardee School in New Friends Colony, for toddlers where kits were given out to them and the basics of mixing and decoration were explained to toddler classes. These were immensely popular and I hope to continue with them whenever possible.

How do you ensure that your business stays environmentally conscious?

We have a special project called ‘Recycle…Reuse’ where all the empty Nutella glass jars used by us, are not binned but washed thoroughly, and little planters are grown in them by my special team. These are then given out complimentary to clients, to thank mother nature. And we can’t stop smiling when clients specially call us and say, “please don’t forget to send our planter!”

What is on the cards for the future of BbD?

To celebrate our 10th anniversary, we have launched our website and pan-India delivery. Once we master that, we will put on our thinking caps for the next big step!

Please share a message for aspiring home bakers and self-made entrepreneurs?

Do what makes you happy! Taking suggestions is good, but ultimately you must make your own decisions. Never regret what you do, because it was exactly what you wanted at that time. Learn from your mistakes – you are your own best teacher. Give your 100%, you will have to let go of a lot of social commitments, but a client’s satisfied smile will be worth it. In my case specifically, it’s the kids. I adore them, and believe me, their feedback is the most unbiased – I have learnt to admire their reactions!

Bakez By Daizy has firmly cemented itself as the best home-baker in Delhi for 2021, and I encourage you to try her goodies as soon as possible, if you haven’t already!

Check out her website to place orders pan-India: https://bakezbydaizy.in/

Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/bakezbydaizy/?hl=en

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This post is in collaboration with Queen’s Brigade.

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This blog post is part of the blog challenge ‘Blogaberry Dazzle’ hosted by Cindy D’Silva and Noor Anand Chawla and sponsored by Queen’s Brigade.

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*This is a sponsored post.

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