Debbie Butler, owner of DebbieKakes & More, started her bustling, word-of-mouth business from her home kitchen seven years ago.
Butler, a Chicago native, mom of three and grandmother of five, told the Recorder she’s thrilled about all the ways her business — and third career — has taken off in just under a decade. Although she grew up helping her mother in the kitchen, Butler said no one else in the family could bake, and starting a business out of her own kitchen was the least of her priorities.
“Being in the kitchen with my mom — bless her heart and bless her soul — I always stood by her side and just assisted her whenever she was baking,” Butler said. “Then, when she couldn’t do it anymore, I would do it; then when she stopped cooking totally … I would bring cakes to her to Chicago or ship them to her, and she would say, ‘You need to really get into this because your cake arriving is good. It’s still moist.’”
Butler spent 30 years working in fast food and then 15 years in manufacturing. Baking was a hobby until she went wedding cake shopping for her son and daughter-in-law and realized she could easily make whatever cake they wanted.
“I went around to different places and in search of the cake that he would love, and everywhere I went, I saw cakes, and I was like, ‘I can make this cake,’” Butler said.
After talking it over, Butler was given their blessing and churned out a three-tier chocolate and vanilla soufflé cake, which is still to this day “the biggest cake I’ve ever made in my life,” Butler said.
Not long after that, DebbieKakes & More, LLC was born — with the seal of her mother’s approval, Butler said. The business originated with Butler’s signature pound cakes but quickly grew to incorporate cupcakes, cookies, pies and some family favorite recipes. Orders are usually custom and use a blend of family recipes, suggestions from friends and a handful of Butler’s personal creations. However, each dessert that comes out of Butler’s kitchen features her unique spin on it.
Butler even has a list of desserts named after family members, such as the Shay strawberry crumb cheesecake that she named after her niece.
“That was a promise I made to my nieces and nephews,” Butler said. “I say, ‘as I go along and I pick one of your favorites, or whoever inspired me to make something … that’s gonna wind up being your cake or your dessert.’”
Katie Freeman, Butler’s youngest daughter, said the lemon and red velvet cookies are her favorite things her mother makes and places orders for them whenever she’s visiting home. Freeman doesn’t help out in the kitchen though; her job is simply to taste test, as Butler is “more patient” in the kitchen than she is, despite having still taught her daughter how to bake cookies.
However, Butler said that Freeman helps out with the business in other ways.
Although she is currently studying psychology at Ohio University, Freeman said she made it a priority to help streamline orders and bring more visibility to the business by setting up the DebbieKakes & More website and Facebook Business page.
“I saw her passion for it, and I wanted to help her out, to make things a little more easier for her,” Freeman said. “It actually helps me see her in a different light. … I was able to see her just as a woman and starting her own business, being able to do something outside of that category of just being a mom.”
DebbieKakes & More, LLC operates primarily through word of mouth, festivals and pop-ups, Butler said. However, she takes orders through her Facebook page and by phone. Most days, the business is a one-woman show, although she gets help from her daughters and sisters for special events, such as the Juneteenth Foodways Festival, which gives her “that initiative to keep going.”
“If it’s something that you love doing and you won’t have any issues or problems,” Butler said. “You have to have a desire to want to do it. First and foremost … if you have a desire to do and grow something that you look passionate about, it’ll take care of itself.”
For more information about DebbieKakes & More, or to place an order online, visit facebook.com/DebbieKakesandMore. To place an order by phone, text 317-490-0015.
Contact Arts & Culture Reporter Chloe McGowan at 317-762-7848. Follow her on X @chloe_mcgowanxx. If you would like your business highlighted by the Indiana Minority Business Magazine, click here.
Chloe McGowan is the Arts & Culture Reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper. Originally from Columbus, OH, Chloe has a bachelor's in journalism from The Ohio State University. She is a former IndyStar Pulliam Fellow, and has previously worked for Indy Maven, The Lantern, and CityScene Media Group. In her free time, Chloe enjoys live theatre, reading, baking and keeping her plants alive.
