Kara's Cupcakes is the vision of executive pastry chef, Kara Haspel Lind.  A somewhat rebellious child, Kara's sweet tooth is almost legendary in her family.  The daughter of a dentist, Kara's love for sweet treats was discouraged by her parents.  She learned early in childhood to hide candy and other sweets throughout her family home. This appreciation of sweets is among Kara's earliest and strongest memories.  As an advertising sales executive and passionate home baker, Kara realized the importance of following her dreams and enrolled in Tante Marie pastry school.  With the goal of furthering her baking skill set, she diligently embraced this program.

A small word of mouth cupcake catering business soon was born.  It quickly became so popular that demand for her cupcakes exceeded her ability to fill the orders.  Before long, the first Kara's Cupcakes bakery and retail store opened in San Francisco, followed by a retail outlet in historic Ghirardelli Square.

Today, a mom and entrepreneur with eight busy bakeries selling her famous cupcakes, Kara can still be found most mornings working in the kitchen with her dedicated pastry staff.  She visits the farmers markets regularly, looking for inspiration, and sourcing seasonal items for upcoming cupcakes flavors.  Thankfully, as the owner of a cupcake bakery she no longer needs to hide sweets, preferring to share her new finds.

Since 2006, Kara’s Cupcakes has continued its focus not only on its local and sustainable business and baking practices, but also ongoing philanthropy donating over $1.5 million to the community and local charities.  Last year, the company gave away more than 350,000 cupcakes to feed the needy and over $25K to local charities for schools, non-profit organizations, etc.  The company’s sustainable focus and green practices led to its most recent award for "Beyond the Check - Community Partnership in Sustainability" by the San Francisco Business Times.

- What are your top 3 business tips for aspiring entrepreneurs
Educate yourself on the market you are interested in pursuing and become an expert.
Create a business mission that will guide and inspire you as the business grows/changes.
Start small, know  your audience and stay focused.  It is a marathon not a race.

- What has been your biggest business mistake
Not listening to my intuition.

- What do you think is the difference between people who talk about starting businesses and those who actually do it
Are you fear based or not?
You have to be willing to take a chance, follow your passion, create a mission for your business  and let go of the fear…just do it.  If you fail, there is always something else to do.  I followed my intuition on starting my own business.  I used my marketing background, my appreciation for fashion and my love for sweets to create a cupcake empire based on a community sensibility.   Our mission “Making the planet a little sweeter by creating celebratory moments with each cupcake we serve” guides us in our business everyday!

- What has been greatest business decision you made that changed everything for the better
One of the greatest decision was leaving my job at Conde Nast and committing full time to expanding Kara’s Cupcakes.  ( and listening to my husband)  Following my intuition.

- Best book for the entrepreneurial mindset
"Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life Without Losing Its Soul” by Howard Shultz, CEO of Starbucks
Lean In ” by Sheryl Sandberg
Pastry books and cookbooks are inspiration for me as an entrepreneur:  David Lebovitz, Ina Garten, Emily Luchetti, Shery Yard…
Dot Complicated:  Randi Zuckerberg.
Danny Meyer:  Setting the Table.

- Plus much more...