Today we’d like to introduce you to Ann Alaboud.
Hi Ann, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I have a Bachelor’s degree in Arts and an MBA in HR. However; I have always found herself creating craft work such as scrapbooking, painting and drawing. After traveling to Europe and obtaining my culinary training , I decided to take the leap of faith into my amazing journey and start the business! Conversely, with so much passion in baking since the age of 8, I decided to pursue my dream of combining the two together and pursuing a business that I totally love and have passion for!
The story behind choosing the name Sweet Treasures emerged from all the memories that an occasion holds and could be brought to life with Sweet Treasures’ creativity. Because every occasion starts with a memorable and sweet treasure!
Sweet Treasures brings the best in American baking with a European gourmet twist. We feature fresh-baked cakes, cupcakes, cookies, breakfast muffins, brownies and cakepops. We also have a great variety of gluten free cupcakes. Everything served at Sweet Treasures is made fresh daily on the premises using the finest ingredients, including fresh butter, eggs, pure Madagascar vanilla, Belgian chocolate, and fresh organic milk. We also proudly serve gourmet coffee and organic teas from clean label companies like Rishi and Mighty Leaf.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The business began in 2015, and in 2016, I had the good fortune of winning the Food Network show “Cake Wars.” Progress was swift. In 2019, we decided to open another location and by the time we had opened it, COVID hit and we ended up closing it just 6 months after opened. This was a huge setback as I invested $480K that I would not be getting back. Sometimes in life, we just have to cut our losses and move on. Still recovering from that setback, I did not want to pursue any more locations. I decided to just focus on one location -the one we got famous from-our humble beginnings! I was approached by our sweet mayor at the time and she told me about a great new development. I hesitated but then I decided to go for it! So in March of 2022, I built a new location, 2 minutes close to my house. I thought, wow, how cool would it be to run back and forth with ease. I took the leap and built an amazing location. I made sure it had all the bells and whistles of an amazing business. The amazing retail section and having an office and an entire decorating station, this was my dream come true! Again, I had invested more than the second location but I was determined to make it work. We opened our doors March 22, 2022 but shortly after, I was shocked with news that ricked my entire existence. I was diagnosed with terminal stage 4 gastric cancer with a spread to my esophagus, liver, diaphragm and peritoneum. April 22, we closed our doors and I started fighting the battle that I never thought I would fight at a young age! This did not stop me one bit. I was determined to fight the disease even with all odds to survive. I could not believe that I would die young even before reaching middle age! 17 surgeries later, 28 immunotherapy and 8 chemo therapy sessions, I fought through and surprised my medical team. I was determined and I made it! Today, I work from 6 am until 8 pm. I have the best team to help me through. I learned that determination can get you through no matter what the circumstance.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I specialize in custom-designed cakes ranging from traditional tiered wedding cakes to one-of-a-kind creations for birthdays or special occasions. I create cakes that will be remembered forever. Every cake i create tells a story and i also try to make it unique by adding special elements that would be talked about for years!
Apart from cakes, my shop is a cafe style to which we bake cupcakes and pastries for walk-ins and we also serve as a full coffee house.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
I enjoy literature and anything educational. My guilty pleasure is collecting cookbooks. I have been collecting cookbooks since I was sixteen years old. I admire how authors reinvent a traditional recipe. One day, I’ll share my recipes on my blog. I’m now writing all of my own recipes on my computer. My next step will be to start publishing them on my blog and sharing them with those who enjoy cooking and baking. I also intend to publish a book. I definitely want to add the chapter on my cancer journey to inspire others.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://sweet-treasures.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stcakes/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/STcakesMN
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@sweettreasuresmn?lang=en
