Meet the baker creating showstopper cakes that taste as good as they look

STEPH Horn baked her first cake 13 years ago for her eldest son’s first birthday.

She continued to bake as a hobby until the pandemic hit, where she invested time and money into turning her hobby into a business.

Here, in our latest Business of the Week feature, Steph tells us about Merryfall Cakes Bakery Ltd and the bespoke cakes she creates – and how she enjoys being her customers’ “cake lady”.

If you would like your business to feature as Business or Trader of the Week, email heidi.summerfield@newsquest.co.uk

Business owner Steph Horn and her husband Reuben

What’s your full name?

Steph Horn

What’s the name of the business?

Merryfall Cakes Bakery Ltd

What’s the address?

Big Merryfall Farm,

Whitley,

Warrington

Are you the owner/manager?

Yes

When did you open the business?

I have been baking full time since April 2022 and started the limited company in September 2023.

Has it always been in the same location?

I began at home and then moved to my parents’ farm where they converted one of the side barns into a purpose-built kitchen.

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Are you local to the area? Did you grow up here?

Yes, I was born in Warrington and grew up in the small village of Whitley. I moved to Harrogate for a couple of years and then moved back to Barnton in Northwich, but we have a lot of ties with Warrington.

Tasty treats from Merryfall Cakes Bakery

Tell me a bit about your business. What do you do? What services do you provide?

We specialise in bespoke celebration cakes and cupcakes and wedding cakes with a wholesale range on the side too. We bake to order using fresh locally sourced ingredients and use local businesses for our supplies too (Windsor Cake Craft, based on Old Liverpool Road). I am a regional finalist in The Wedding Industry Awards 2025 for my wedding cakes and travel all over the north west and beyond delivering delicious and bespoke cakes, designed and baked especially for my couples.

Why did you decide to open your own business?

I have three young children – aged 13, eight and three - and after having my third child in July 2021, the cost of going back to work and childcare wasn’t feasible. I had built up a small clientele during lockdown, enough for me to go self-employed to be fully flexible for the children. I have always enjoyed being creative and learnt throughout lockdown different types of skills linked to baking and decorating that I now use and build on for each occasion.

What’s your business background?

I first baked a cake for my eldest son for his first birthday in 2012 and continued to bake for a hobby until 2020 when lockdown hit. I used my furloughed time to bake and increase my skill and knowledge and baked for family and friends if their birthday fell during that time. I have experience in working in hospitality, working in local pubs up until I joined the childcare industry in 2016. I had started the business out on a self-employed basis, however as I began building the business and expanding into different areas, it became apparent that I needed to create the limited company for insurance purposes. Running the limited company comes with a lot more responsibility and I have learnt a lot more skills such as marketing, budgeting, accounting, payroll etc which I never thought I’d have to do. In 2023, I employed my first employee to work alongside myself and to help with the baking aspect of the business as I focused on the decorating skill set. Unfortunately, due to other work commitments, she left in September 2024 and therefore my husband came to join me and we have been working together since then. He concentrates on the Wholesale side of the business while I concentrate on celebration and wedding cakes.

Why this type of business?

I love being creative, using different materials to create a bespoke celebration cake that no one in the country or the world has had. The joy of seeing a client’s face when they have collected or I have delivered, never gets old and the kind words that are said even a few days later are what drives me to continue to do what I do. It’s fully flexible with my homelife, although it can get very consuming and I have to really switch off when I need to - but that all comes with part of running your own business.

Were you open before/during/after the Covid-19 pandemic? How did this affect your business?

We weren’t open during the pandemic as I was baking for family and friends, but we opened in April 2022 due to the increase of orders and customers from sharing what I had been doing during the lockdown and the business has grown at a steady 25 per cent each year since.

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What makes your business different to others in the same area/field? What sets your business apart from your competitors?

We specialise in bespoke cakes, not one cake looks the same when it leaves our kitchen as we believe if you are paying a cake designer to create your special birthday/wedding cake, you're paying for something that no-one else has ever or will ever have the same. Some designs are similar but none are identical. We have vegan, gluten and dairy free options available if a client needs these options too. All our bakes are freshly baked using the best ingredients, sourced locally if possible. I am a perfectionist and I strive to ensure the cakes that leave our kitchen are finished perfectly. If they aren’t, I have been known to contact the client to ask for a couple more hours to ensure the cake has been finished to the highest standard. We are fully insured, Level 3 hygiene trained and have a 5* food rating, this along with other overheads that come with running a business reflects in our prices but you can be rest assured that what you order is of the best quality, finished to the highest standard and of course - tastes amazing!

One of Steph's wedding cake creations

Why do loyal customers return to your business?

I am their cake lady! It’s like with anything, if you find someone who does a good job for you - you’re not going to look elsewhere. I am their cake designer and they are my clients. Some clients give me a list of dates for the year ahead and they are pencilled in my diary for that date. I have returning customers because I’ve been able to help them with short notice, if they’ve been let down etc so then they return for their next order. I have past wedding clients that now come for me for their children’s birthday cakes too which is so heartwarming that I get to witness their family growing. It’s also my loyal customers recommending me to their family and friends, I know I’d trust someone’s recommendation more than reading reviews or if they had a stash full of awards etc.

What’s next? What do the next few months hold for you and your business?

The next few months in the wedding side are wedding consultations for 2025 and 2026 wedding cakes, wedding fayres, styled shoots and actual wedding cakes. On the celebration side, we’re pushing our baking birthday parties which are always so much fun to do, this entwines my past experience working with children with what I do now and I just love it! We also have lots of big birthday’s booked in and of course our regular clients too. And on the wholesale side, we are searching for two new clients that are looking for delicious home baked treats to sell in their cafes/venues/shops etc. In the next five years though, I’d love to have a premises where we operate a shop front full of delicious bakes, which are accessible to everyone, where I can hold wedding consultations, birthday parties etc - so keep an eye out for that!