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Interview with Lev Ekster, CEO of CupcakeStop
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I've extolled my love for cupcakes before in this column. A few months ago I interviewed the owners of Crumbs, my favorite cupcake bakery in New York. Recently, I had the opportunity to interview Lev Ekster, CEO of CupcakeStop, a mobile cupcake bakery in New York City. I first learned about Lev's story through Crain's and I reached out to him to get more details about his career path and his start as an entrepreneur. His story is one that proves that a business can indeed be started in a tough economic time in the midst of a tight job market. He is the perfect example of an unintentional entrepreneur!
Christa - You started CupcakeStop after graduating from law school. Did you get a law degree with the intention of using it to start your own business?
Lev - No, not necessarily. I always envisioned myself as a future business owner, but the poor legal job market just sped up the process.
Christa - Was there a specific experience that made you realize you wanted to start your own business rather than pursue a typical career track in law?
Lev - I worked extremely hard at a law firm as a Summer Associate during the Summer of 2008 and then part-time through the Christmas season only to be told they would not be able to offer me full-time employment following graduation. Other classmates also had offers rescinded or pushed back and some firms actually dissolved. This made me decide that I didn't want to work for someone else and rely on them for a paycheck.
Christa - Did you feel any fear in starting your own business?
Lev - Yes absolutely. Many people around me cautioned against starting a business during such terrible economic times. It was also a risk to postpone taking the BAR exam and not practicing law to pursue this business.
Christa - Tell me about your decision to go mobile with your business. How did you make that decision? What other options did you consider?
Lev - The mobile idea arose after deciding that opening a brick and mortar location would take more funding and hence more time to launch. After speaking to some friends and family, it just clicked that cupcakes are a perfect mobile food for those on the go and being on a truck would allow us to expose ourselves to so many more New Yorker's than a store would!
Christa - What are the top 3 things you do that make your business successful?
Lev - Well I don't think we've even reach our potential yet but I work extremely hard to maintain quality, great customer service and overall consistency. I personally do all the Twittering and reply to every tweet we receive. The staff on our truck are trained on how to interact with our customers and our bakers know the quality level that CupcakeStop customers have grown accustomed to.
Many thanks to Marie Assante at R. Couri Hay Creative Public Relations for arranging this interview. Find out where Lev and the CupcakeStop is at any moment by following them on Twitter or visiting their website at http://www.cupcakestop.com/locations.html.
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