If you know anything about me, you know that my animals are my children & our number one priority! They sleep in the bed with us; come on holiday when we go away (when possible); & I have cried nearly every time I have had to take them to the vet. There are times that my husband & I have joked that they eat better than us!
I met Ilze through the Myasthenia Gravis support group, & we instantly just clicked. We bonded over our love for fur-kids & zest for life. Her kindness drew me to her instantly & we have just grown in our friendship since then.
When I had to go to Cape Town for an appointment with a specialist, Ilze offered to pick me up from the airport & took me to another friend’s house where I would be spending the night. She took me past Frits Dog Hotel (a must-visit for everyone in Cape Town!) & we chatted like we had known each other for years! She then gave me some treats to bring back for Stella & Lola, as well as for a fundraiser that I was doing for one of the local animal shelters.
Now let me warn you, my dogs are flipping fussy! They won’t even touch dog food bought from a supermarket, & oftentimes will just bury their treats rather than eat them. I warned you, they are spoilt… But these they gobbled down & sat as close as possible to us hoping to get another one. What truly blows me away is that Ilze bakes these all by hand after hours – she works a full-time job, yet Rogue’s Pawsome Bakery is her true passion. She lives beyond her diagnosis & this is her version of her “flowercrown”. That’s when I KNEW I had to do a feature on her!
I asked her a few questions to get to know a bit more about this amazing business:
Your business name: Rogue’s Pawsome Bakery
When did you start: 2015
What did you do before this: I’m fully employed at one of the biggest cellphone companies where I’m involved in knowledge management.
How/why did you start: I started this since I was going through some challenges at work, and health-wise. One of my biggest passions is my dogs so I started baking for my dogs, & some friends started encouraging me to start a business.
What do you love most about having your own business: It gives me a chance to be creative and do something totally unique. I love testing out new flavours (and so do my dogs!). Baking for the fur babies is my happy place.
What have been some of your biggest battles with running your own business: Getting my business name out there; exposure and building a stable client base…. Not creating debt but doing the most I can with what I could.
What is your main objective for your businesses: I want to grow my artisan bakery to be household name and go to turn when people are looking for something unique for their dogs.
You can visit their Facebook page here to find out more!
Ilze also makes birthday cakes for your furry-friends & currently has 11 different flavours of biscuits – make sure you keep an eye on her page to stay up to date with any new & exciting products she brings out.
I know I will be placing my orders soon for my spoilt brats!
