Success Stories: Women Entrepreneurs

Before launching Short Street Cakes, Jodi Rhoden whipped up cakes in her home to generate income for her family.  Jodi realized that in order for the business to really take off and succeed, she needed a larger capacity than her certified home kitchen.  Jodi took Mountain BizWorks' Foundations class and created a business plan to formalize her business.  With a plan in place, Jodi rented space at Asheville-Buncombe Technical College's Blue Ridge Food Venture campus.  A couple of years later, she opened her cake shop in West Asheville.  2011 marked Short Street Cake's 7th anniversary as a retail store, where Jodi and 7 other workers earn a living and turn out made-from-scratch delights.