Interview with Entrepreness Lisa Watson of Cupcake Jones

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February 12, 2010 by Cecilia D. | Comments (1)

Lisa Watson loves to smile, she loves to laugh, to give back, and to share her beloved cupcakes with all her friends and her community. Lisa and her husband Peter are the owners of Cupcake Jones, a sweet cupcake shop on the corner of NW 10th & Everett in the Pearl District. A cozy little shop, as you walk in a glass display showcases some of the most beautiful confections. Depending on the day, the menu changes, but every day there are the staples: The Pearl, Downtown Cupcake Brown, and its infamous Velvet Painting: red velvet cake filled with vanilla bean pastry cream, topped with cream cheese icing and a hand candied rose petal. When I was there to meet Lisa for our interview, I was gifted with a delicious Mimosa Orange, one of February’s cocktail inspired cupcakes served only on Fridays.

I learned a lot about Cupcake Jones by talking to Lisa–that it’s not only there to serve you sweet, savory cakes made by professional pastry chefs, but also to support the community in very special ways, and to serve you and your closest friends on very special days.

We’re so happy you gave Portland a super cute cupcake shop. How did this happen?
My husband, Peter and I fell in love with the idea of it, and it just seemed like the perfect place where we could work together and spend time together. Also, my background is in the food industry so it was just so fitting.

If you could describe what Cupcake Jones is all about in three words, what would they be?
Fun, Quality, and Giving. Cupcake Jones is a fun atmosphere and we all have fun working together. It’s quality not only in the business, but also with the ingredients that are used and the integrity we hold. Lastly, it’s giving because we’ve made it that way since the beginning, and made it our mission to support the community that supports us.

Your staff always seems so happy, they seem to enjoy what they do.
Yes! All our bakers—pastry chefs, have all gone and graduated from culinary school. As professionals in the industry, I feel that makes them more committed to and empathetic of quality and high standards.

What’s a typical day at work like for you? What aspects of the business do you manage?
I manage all the sales and marketing, always thinking of new ways to try and keep Cupcake Jones on top of our customers’ minds. I also handle all the events: community outreach, wedding and catering.

What do you love most about your job?
I love the interaction with customers, especially devoted customers. I love to see all my friends and family who stop by.

You’re open 7 days a week, how to do you find time for yourself and family? What are your ways of relaxing?
[Laughs] Our friends come HERE! It’s been a difficult balancing act since we’ve opened. My husband and I haven’t taken a vacation in three years, but we’re planning our first one now. But it’s always fun working with him here.

So if you had one full day to do whatever you wanted, what would you do?
Definitely go to the beach! I also love to read, so it would be great to be able to get some time to just sit down and dive into a novel.

You are highly motivated to give back to the community through weekly donations–Blanchet house, local schools, Boys & Girls Club, animal shelters, etc. How does this work and how can we get involved?
We get a lot of requests for cupcake donations and gift certificates for auctions, amongst other things, and we try to fulfill as many as we can. Every Tuesday, we donate 5% of the sales for that day to a non-profit, which had been selected in a drawing. If you want to give back to your community and to support these organizations, all you have to do is treat yourself to a cupcake!

Your cupcakes give back too–how are they environmentally friendly?
We recycle everything that can be recycled, from packaging to paper towels. We also try to get as many ingredients locally at the Farmer’s Market. There’s low water usage for our fixtures, and we turn off all the lights in the kitchen after we’re done baking for the day.

Your cupcakes are healthier too. Does that mean I get to eat two or three more?
Yes, we never use shortening or artifical flavorings or colorings. That’s why you won’t see the greens and blues on our cakes. We use unsalted butter, natural flavors (like vanilla paste), and we make all our garnishes from scratch—no packaged sprinkles, powder, etc.

What are your most popular flavors?
Hands down, RED VELVET!

I see you’ve done a lot of events and catering. What event comes to mind, or what was the most elaborate project you did for a catered event?
We did a retirement party for a business that’s normally open 24 hours a day, so we did THREE parties in one day, during each shift and baked 160 dozen cupcakes. It was so sweet, the retired President of the company did come to all three shifts and celebrated.

Are you currently working on any new cupcake flavors?
The first year and a half we were all about trying new things, and now that we’ve gotten a better understanding of what our customers want and what sells the best, I think we’ve got our menu secured. Our menu does change every month with new flavors, but January will always have the same menu, February will always have the same menu … so you know what to expect from us and get the flavors you love most!

Lastly, do you plan on opening more locations in the future?
Yes, opening more locations is definitely part of our plan for the future. We actually hope to expand in other states—states that we’d love to visit all the time, of course!

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One Response to “Interview with Entrepreness Lisa Watson of Cupcake Jones”

• Tiffanee Bean Says:
  
  February 21st, 2010 at 6:21 pm

  Hands down, best cupcakes I’ve EVER had!!!

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