Aria's Cakes Named Finalist for the New Artisan Business Award 2026 | Our Story
- Aria's Blog
- Aug 2
- 4 min read
Our Biggest Christmas Gift Has Arrived Early... ❤️
If someone had told me back in January that I would be writing these words today, I honestly wouldn't have believed them.
After the Christmas season had come to an end and our busiest time of the year was finally behind us, the kitchen was quiet again. It gave me a rare opportunity to stop, reflect and look back on everything we had achieved.
Like many small business owners, we're always busy creating the next cake, baking the next batch of gingerbread or packing the next order. We rarely stop to celebrate the journey itself.
During those quieter days, I found myself searching for a publication that truly celebrated independent artisan businesses, not just the beautiful products they create, but the people, passion and craftsmanship behind them.
That's when I discovered The Artisan Founder.
The more I read, the more I realised this wasn't just another magazine. It was a journal dedicated to sharing the stories of makers, celebrating creativity, heritage and the dedication that goes into building a business from the heart.
I thought, "Why not?"
So I wrote a press release about our journey, how Aria's Cakes was born, our Italian heritage, my love for hospitality, and how every biscuit, gingerbread house and cake we create is inspired by family traditions and made by hand with love.
I also entered their 2026 Artisan Founder Awards, never imagining what would happen next.
Then came the first surprise.
The very same day I sent my press release, I received an email that completely caught me by surprise. Our story had caught the editor's attention, and they told me they would be in touch because they wanted to feature Aria's Cakes in an upcoming Easter edition of the journal.
I remember reading that email over and over again with the biggest smile on my face.
Knowing that someone believed our story was worth telling felt incredibly special.
A little while later, our feature was published, celebrating our Italian roots, our passion for artisan baking and our handcrafted biscotti collection.
To me, that already felt like winning.
But life had one more surprise waiting.
Just a few days ago, another email arrived.
I opened it... read it once... then read it again because I couldn't quite believe what I was seeing.
Aria's Cakes has officially been selected as a finalist for the New Artisan Business Award 2026. ❤️
I honestly don't think words can fully express what this means to us.
Aria's Cakes isn't a large company with a big team behind it.
We're a small family business.
Every gingerbread house is baked by hand. Every biscuit is carefully decorated. Every recipe has been developed in our own kitchen. Every order leaves our home carrying a little piece of our heart.
There are long days, late nights, flour everywhere, plenty of coffee, endless Christmas music and a passion that keeps us going even during the busiest weeks of the year.
Receiving recognition like this reminds us why we started.
It reminds us that people see the love behind what we do.
And for that, we are incredibly grateful.
Christmas in July... and what a month it has been!
This wonderful news arrived just after we finished celebrating our biggest Christmas in July yet.
Together, we embraced the Christmas spirit long before December arrived.
We launched our 20% Christmas pre-order event, helping many of you get organised early for the festive season.
We hosted four Instagram giveaways, sharing a little festive magic and putting smiles on the faces of our lucky winners.
Our inbox has been full, our kitchen has been busy, and we've had the joy of welcoming both returning customers and so many new ones into the Aria's Cakes family.
To every single person who placed an order, shared one of our posts, left us a kind review, recommended us to a friend or simply cheered us on...
Thank you.
Small businesses grow because of people like you.
Your support means far more than you probably realise.
And we're only just getting started...
Although Christmas may still seem far away, behind the scenes we're already preparing for what we hope will be our busiest and most exciting festive season yet.
This year has been one of creativity, collaboration and countless hours of recipe development.
One of the projects I'm most excited about is our brand-new Flavour Journey Atelier.
A unique workshop experience created in collaboration with a wine specialist. Together, we've paired handcrafted gingerbread with carefully selected wines to create an experience that celebrates flavour, craftsmanship and the joy of sharing something truly special.
Creating this collection has been a journey in itself. After many batches, plenty of tasting and lots of fine-tuning, we've developed our new Matcha Gingerbread, joining our rich Chocolate Gingerbread and our signature Traditional Spiced Gingerbread. Each flavour has its own personality, and seeing them come together in our workshops has been incredibly rewarding.
Alongside our new workshop experiences, we're also introducing beautiful new products and festive collections, with a few exciting surprises still waiting to be revealed.
Some new arrivals are already available...
Others are still our little Christmas secret.
So keep following our journey, there is so much more to come over the next few months, and we can't wait to share it all with you.
Could You Help Us Win?
Being named a finalist in the New Artisan Business Award 2026 finalist is already an incredible honour.
But now we need your help.
If you've ever enjoyed one of our gingerbread houses, cakes or biscuits, attended one of our workshops, ordered a gift for someone special, or simply enjoyed following our journey, we would be so grateful if you could spare a minute to vote for us.
Every single vote makes a difference.
Every share helps.
Every bit of support means the world to a small family business like ours.
No matter what happens next, reaching this stage is something we'll treasure forever.
Thank you for believing in our dream.
Thank you for supporting handmade.
Thank you for supporting small businesses.
And thank you for being part of the Aria's Cakes family.
With love,
Arianna & the Aria's Cakes family 🤍
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