Today we’d like to introduce you to Shaina Thomas.
Hi Shaina, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My story begins with me creating treats for my daughter’s birthday. Everyone loved them! After some convincing, I created and launched Sugar Rymmed Potions and Pastries. It was during a lazy summer off from teaching in June 2019. I figured I needed to try to earn some money. During that time, I only sold brookies (eventually expanding to 25 flavors). About 2 months later, I incorporated lemonade and tea (3 flavors). Business flourished greatly during the pandemic! I obtained my bartending license and combined my skills of baking and mixology into the business in different ways. My drink flavors expanded to gourmet lemonade/limeade/punches in over 22 flavors. I introduced cakes, along with a few other confections in summer/fall 2021. Some creations were very popular with customers and some didn’t take so well and I had to shift with demands. I went from baking from home as a cottage kitchen operation (direct to customer) to vending at event. I participated in so many monthly events that my demand to be at events increased and primary income came from events during 2021-2025. In July of 2022 (about a month after my initial Voyage Magazine Interview), I was able to resign from my teaching career to become a full-time business owner. My earnings were similar to my yearly salary, but my demand kept me in the kitchen, into the late nights/early mornings, while having to perform at my full-time job. After some praying for direction and other life circumstances, I made the choice to run forward full- time with Sugar Rymmed. I haven’t looked back since! Currently, my business is focused on pound cakes and brookies. I am still the owner of Sugar Rymmed Potions and Pastries, but I have passed the baton to the next generation. My daughter operates within the business now.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
As a full-time business owner, it has not been a smooth road, as far as predictability. You never can be too sure what will happen when you stick your neck out and put all your faith on yourself. There have been times that my choice caused strain in my former marriage…the fluctuations with customers made my expectations of earnings switch from year to year…the earning fluctuations made me unsettled from season to season having no stable, expected salary. I went all-in at a unique time when the world was getting back to full normalcy after the pandemic. Many people established new businesses during the pandemic…many would be considered my competitors-bakers. There was a wave of new businesses because people needed more streams of income, discovered a new skill and turned it into income, or people had the skill and were influenced by others to try it out seriously. 2020-2022 was a sweet spot for my business. By 2023, things had changed for my business and I had to shift my focus. I couldn’t scroll online for a few minutes without seeing what would be considered as competitors. That didn’t upset me because MAKE YOUR MONEY! I’m here for it! I’m always applauding and even patronizing the competition, but I did notice a real change in my business. As much as I support their businesses, I couldn’t deny the natural consequences of additional options in the city. The amount of direct customers doing pick-up orders decreased dramatically, compared to former years. So I began to focus on events. That’s how I became a high-demand/exclusive event vendor. My biggest lesson or realization was that it was never about faith in my business. It was always about faith in The One who told me to move forward into full-time entrepreneurship. Things haven’t always been lovely, but I’ve never had to go backwards. I’ve been kept through unimaginable circumstances. I give thanks to The Lord for that.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
One thing that sets me apart from others is the fact that I officially dedicated my business to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. That means that I intentionally spoke with my mouth and in my heart that The Lord is the true CEO of my business. All decisions from where I go, to who I accept as a client, to how I manage my business goes through The Lord, in prayer. I have allowed Him to lead and guide any changes that I’ve made in my business. Some of these decisions would have seemed counter-productive. Some of the surrendering was difficult. But I had to acknowledge that the wisdom of The Lord is complete, and I can’t compete with that. It was almost like He burnt my business down in 2025, in order to build it again on His principles. For example, He led me to observe Sabbath, not as just a day of observation, but as a lifestyle. That means that instead of being the work-a-holic that I used to be, accepting as many jobs as I could (to earn as much as I could), I remain in a state of rest and only go where He would have me.
Another example is that now I trust Him to send me open doors/opportunities instead of looking for them. That took a level of trust that I was not prepared for. It was tough, but I was able to work through it. This came… and trust He has not let me down yet. We live in a hyper-independent, grind and hustle-culture society, which is actually opposite of His ways, and I couldn’t realize that until I allowed The Lord to put His Hands on my ways. Now, I use my platforms not for just advertising business, but for uplifting His business-Kingdom Business.
What also sets me apart from typical bakers or even mixologists/drink masters is that I have published 2 books that are live on Amazon. Shot Girl Summer was published in 2023 and Sugar Rymmed Holidays was published in 2024. They are both drink recipe books, created for the at-home or hosting bartender. I was drawn to making drinks for years, especially when I was a big partaker in alcoholic beverages. People enjoyed my drinks so much that I decided to allow them an easy way to recreate moderately sophisticated tastes, with simple and easy-to-accomplish recipes. Yes, I am a fully surrendered Christian, who does not shun drinking alcohol. I adopted the motto of Uncle Nearest Whiskey Company: Drink Honorably. Ecclesiastes 8:15 deals with the concept of eating, drinking, and being merry. That concept teaches us to be joyous in all circumstance. Some early scholars attribute Ecclesiastes to King Solomon, wisest king recorded in The Bible. I will add another principle: anything in excess falls under the gluttony umbrella. I do not support nor do I promote drunkenness or drinking alcohol in excess. My recipe books are great for occasional and social consumption.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I speak for and model total surrender of my business to God. That is TOTALLY risky to the logical mind, but it is the most secure place to be, in all actuality. This is what feels risky: your plans and desires for your business could be the exact opposite of His. Your surrendering of control could make you very uncomfortable. It could make you feel like you’re on a rollercoaster that you have never seen. You have no idea what to expect. It may not even feel fun. But it will be exactly the ride that you never knew you needed. A real risk in business, when surrendering control of it to God, is the truth that your business may not even be in His Will for you. But here is the comfort of it- if your current business is not what God intended for you, wherever He leads you will be so much greater. He will get the glory by making whatever you put in His hands turn out victorious. This is the only perceived risk truly worth taking.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.amazon.com/Sugar-Rymmed-Potions-Pastries-Presents/dp/B0BW2X9FV8
- Instagram: Instagram.com/Sugar_Rymmed
