Lisa’s yummy ‘hobby’ takes off thanks to social network (From Ilkley Gazette)

Bramhope woman's yummy ‘hobby’ takes off thanks to social network

2:00am Saturday 16th March 2013 in News By Anika Bourley

An American cake-baker who turned her passion into a business is tasting runaway success thanks to the power of Twitter.
Lisa Gair, 55, who runs The Yummy Yank from her kitchen in Bramhope, has found her business booming since she got onto the social networking site.
Lisa, who started her business as a hobby five years ago, has been inundated with orders since signing up to Twitter and now has nearly 1,400 followers.
With more than 620 friends as well on her business Facebook page and a burgeoning reputation locally, her hobby has now turned into a full-time job.
Lisa, whose business is showcasing in April’s edition of Sainsbury’s Magazine, is amazed at the way it has taken off.
She said: “I love baking, and when Bramhope started a farmer’s market nearly five years ago I thought this could be fun.
“I had no intention of it turning into a business. It was going to be a hobby once a month and that was it – but little did I know.”
She then started going to Burley farmer’s market as well – but it was social media that really made the business take off.
She was already on Facebook but was advised by her daughter Amy Berman to use Twitter as well and she thinks the two now account for 85 per cent of her business.
“Twitter is really what made my business,” she said. “Social media is amazing.”
With her reputation constantly growing, a recipe for her signature chocolate cake and peanut butter cheesecake combo now appears on the Sainsbury’s magazine website.
Lisa, who hails from Baltimore, said she uses traditional American recipes and also creates her own, using local Yorkshire ingredients wherever possible. And she says her customers really notice the difference.
“Even my brownies are very different to British brownies,” she said. “And my cakes are very big. We do three or four layer cakes. I tell my customers it’s not because I want to be bigger and better, it is because it is what I have grown up with.”
And although the origins of the name of her business may seem self-evident she revealed the name was actually a tribute to her father and uncle.
“My father’s nickname was Yummy and his twin’s nickname was Yankie. It is obviously a great name for the business anyway, but to me it is named after my father and uncle,” she said.
Lisa’s cakes and desserts can be found at markets across Yorkshire and via mail order. 
Further details can be found at www.theyummyyank.co.uk, at The Yummy Yank Facebook page, and via Twitter @The YummyYank.