Last cupcake standing: The secrets to how Baked by Melissa outlasted its competition

When Melissa Ben-Ishay started her miniature cupcake business Baked by Melissa in 2008, it was the height of the cupcake craze. Spurred by the popularity of Magnolia Bakery’s 2000 appearance on Sex and the City, a new wave of businesses created what NPR called a “cupcake bubble” by 2010.

In the years since, the cupcake bubble popped. In 2014, New York City cupcake empire Crumbs closed for good and shut down its 48 remaining locations. In 2025, the cupcake ATM company Sprinkles shut down, leaving hundreds of employees shocked.

But Baked by Melissa remains. Today, the company operates nine physical locations in New York and New Jersey, in addition to a nationwide shipping business.

Creating a business that outlives a trend is difficult. Ben-Ishay shared her thoughts with Founder Brew on how two important components of her business—a cautious approach to outside investment and using her own name for the company—have contributed to its success.

Founding ingredients

“There are a lot of reasons we’ve outlasted. We’ve always been focused on what we do. We pay less attention to what other people are doing. We have a lot of self-awareness,” she told Founder Brew.

“At the beginning, we very much bootstrapped, and it was human capital.” Ben-Ishay said. “We did take on an investment when we needed it years in, but we don’t have a ton of investors at all.”

Ben-Ishay explained that her company’s delay in bringing on outside investment was a deliberate choice from the start. “I believe that you have to have a viable business first,” she said.

She shared her one-word strategy for dealing with unsolicited emails from potential investors who approached her too early: “Delete.”

“It’s important to know what you need and set out to find it. I wouldn’t be super reactive to an email that comes through,” she said.

What’s in a name?

Ben-Ishay says having her name on the company was important to its success.

“There’s a personal connection. When you hear ‘Baked by Melissa,’ you imagine Melissa,” she said. “People are looking for that type of connection, that there’s somebody behind the business.”

But, that visibility also comes with consequences. She lives with the knowledge that “one rouge Instagram post” from her could impact her business and people’s jobs.

As the company grew, she realized that in everyday interactions when she was getting recognized, it was now part of her job to stay gracious and represent the company well. It’s a serious responsibility she doesn’t take lightly, she shared.

“And if any founder is going to be the face of their business, they shouldn’t either,” Ben-Ishay said.