Marsha Quarles and her family have a sweet tooth and they are sharing it with the world.
The local dessert shop owners recently won the People’s Choice Award recently at the Indianapolis Zoo’s 32nd annual Zoobilation event. With a multitude of restaurants competing, the victory grabbed some attention.
Recorder: How did you get started in the dessert business?
Marsha: My mother, Jo Avant, insisted we take cake-decorating classes, and after some resistance I finally gave in. Mom was always the teacher’s favorite pupil to use as an example, while I was often the example of what not to do.
What are the important things for your company?
We pride ourselves on attention to detail, great service and also giving back to our community through donations.
Was this a passion that grew into a business or something you always had a plan on doing?
This is definitely started as passion for me and my family. I used to work at the Indiana University School of Health, and I used to make cakes and desserts for everyone there and they would call me the “Cake Lady.” It started off as just baking for work but turned into me doing events and other things that caused me to turn it into a business.
Who is all involved with Marsha’s Specialty Desserts?
The business is my mother, aunt, sister, husband and son, and we all work to put it all together.
Where is your business located and why did you choose that area?
We are based on the west side of Indy on the Avon and Plainfield border. I grew up on the west side and saw that there was a need for a dessert business like the one we offered.
What are your options for catering?
We cater specialty desserts to all types of events and offer reasonable pricing to orders of all sizes to customers looking for all types of options.
What is the importance of your Zoobilation win to you and your company?
It is huge for us to be picked out of 80 restaurants for having the best displays and food in the competition. It means so much to be recognized for what we do and we can’t wait to keep showing off our desserts.
Marsha’s Specialty Desserts is located at 10834 E. US HWY 36 Avon, IN 46123 and also can be located at the Avon Farmers Market every Tuesday from 4 to 7 p.m.
Contact staff writer Dontre Graves at 317-762-7848.
