Sprinkles Cupcakes

Sprinkles Cupcakes is a bakery chain established in 2005. It is considered the world's first cupcake bakery. History In 2002, Candace Nelson and her husband Charles Nelson, both investment bankers, visited Candace's sister in New York and tried the cupcakes at Magnolia Bakery. Candace decided that it was "time for cupcakes to stop being the backup dancer to cakes". Having started a custom cake business after attending Tante Marie's Pastry Program in San Francisco, she set her sights on cupcakes. "I was taking orders for special occasion cakes which I came to realize are, by definition, reserved for special, infrequent occasions," she said. "I wanted to create an artful and handcrafted dessert, yet one which people could eat on a daily basis...which led me to reinvent and elevate the lowly cupcake." Although starting a cupcake bakery was a "high-risk venture" and the bakery business was in a four-year no carb decline, the Nelsons pursued their dream. Their "sleek, minimalistic" store was designed by an architect from Vienna and the logo and packaging were created by a former Martha Stewart employee with design help from graphic designers Kevin Hagen and David Irvin. On April 13, 2005, the Nelsons opened Sprinkles' first store on Little Santa Monica Boulevard in Beverly Hills. On the first day, the cupcakes sold out in three hours, and 2,000 cupcakes were sold the first week. Candace is described as taking a "sophisticated" twist on the classic cupcake, using ingredients like sweet cream butter, pure Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon vanilla, Callebaut chocolate, fresh bananas and carrots, real strawberries, and natural citrus zests. She also creates products such as vegan and gluten-free cupcakes and even cupcakes with dog-friendly ingredients. The cupcakes are baked fresh daily and are free from preservatives, trans fats, and artificial flavors.