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  • Duarte Da Silva

Surreal Problems Call For Cereal Solutions.

Updated: Mar 4, 2021

Blogging about the year 2020 seems so unfathomable in that it has felt like a fever dream that we as a society are unable to awaken from. For many of us, that slumberous pace of life continues to persist as we grasp for any vestige of routine or normalcy. So it was for me, a few months into the Covid-19 pandemic. Out of work, a student, I suddenly found myself with more time than usual as I caught up on all manner of media and literature. My proverbial backlog served to satisfy a temporary craving, but without a sense of employment, I would describe a sense of uselessness that I had not felt in some time. As if I should be doing more with my time. I began to take courses online to further obtain, at least temporarily, the satisfaction of a day fulfilled. Much to my chagrin, it would not be so simple.


It would take weeks, and a particularly satisfying dessert encounter, to be reminded of another lifetime. A time when I explored my love of baking. So I began to experiment with a few recipes. I discovered that there were rules in the baking world to follow, with just as many rules a good baker could break. I was captivated into making a few creations of my own.

Some of my homemade baking expeditions. 1. Triple Layer Nutella Oreo Cake 2. Vanilla Bean Cheesecake with Berry Medley 3. Carrot cake with my attempt at decorating. eek.


Once my baking hand became a little steady, I would fantasize about what a baking business would look like. Especially during a pandemic. A quick search online revealed tons of resources for creating the look of a business, but I was hesitant at best. The idea would sit on the shelf a few weeks longer.


On one seemingly insignificant day, doom scrolling through Twitter, I came across a Washington Post article about Sir Issac Newton. Essentially laying out all that Sir Newton accomplished when pandemic raged in his time. This time, the feelings of inadequacy would never arrive. Instead a wave of inspiration would fall on me in the form of a past vacation I took to the UK, and a particular business I visited. Somewhere in London, through a friend, I was told about the Cereal Killer Cafe. I made sure to make the time to visit, and I was not disappointed. The best parts of my entire childhood came screaming at me, I became consumed in the best way possible.



The Cereal Killer Cafe in London England. Circa 2018


The feeling of joy I felt in that shop never left me. I then decided to start having fun with cereal baking. I never expected to be so emotionally affected by an ingredient, but I really enjoyed working with such fun and colourful materials. It felt less like work and more like a hobby. Within days my entrepreneurial instincts kicked in and I immediately set out to create something that could be sold. The experimenting was tasty, but also costly. What I did not realize was that not all cereals were created equally. Even similar cereals across different brands could be so vastly different. I had my work cut out for me. It would be weeks baking with different cereals of different consistencies to find the few that would eventually become products.



Some of the early concept bars. Also some of the early logo iterations.


Once the product was figured out, I determined the packaging and the logo promptly. For the packaging I knew I wanted to shop local, and that's how I found Creative Bag. An amazing local business that supplies all manner of food packaging located in North Toronto. With everything coming together, I set my sights on the logo. I needed something that would represent the brightness and vibrancy I felt when getting in the kitchen. There were a few iterations, but the final logo came to be quite quickly. With all of the pieces finally together, I launched my business at the end of July 2020 to great reviews.


It was then that I discovered something about myself that I had not expected. That I am still a dreamer. Everything that I have every attempted in my life has been met with a degree of failure, or has it? I might argue that there is a certain merit in attempting something for the sake of personal fulfillment, and not potential success. In creating my small business, I've gained so many transferable skills I never thought I would. Also dusting off old skills and applying them to new experiences. In the end, anyone can put cereal together and call it anything for whatever reason they desire. The reason I did this, and the reason you should follow your passion, is because of the unexpected personal growth that comes with conceiving and executing an idea out of thin air. If I never sell another cereal treat, I would still have so much to be thankful for in this journey. If I had any advice for those getting their ideas off the ground, it would be to just get started and keep at it. No matter how slowly you're making progress, or how hopeless it can all feel sometimes, your passion will manifest itself through the time you put into your craft.


Check out my shop online if you need something sweet in your life.


-DDS




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