WHEN lockdown shut down the high street confectioner Victoria Parry had to completely rethink her fledgling business.

Our Trader of the Week, had opened The Cake Tin just four months before and should have been looking forward to a busy year as summer approached. Instead she had to close the doors.

She and husband David switched to making deliveries and put as much of the business online as they could. To launch the website they ran a giveaway, which gave them an idea – a cupcake campaign.

The Random Act of Cakeyness was born. To recognise the efforts of people in the community, the public could nominate those they thought deserved a treat in the form of a box of cupcakes.

“We asked people to nominate someone they felt deserved it and we just picked one at random,” said Victoria.

“What we hadn’t anticipated was how much the nominations alone uplifted everybody’s spirits.”

She picked up the keys to the shop in Malmesbury in November after an 18-year career in banking. She did catering at college, but it wasn’t until 2018 when she saw an advert for TV show Kirstie’s Homemade Christmas that her life changed.

She won the contest and found the confidence to change track. Sitting at the café across the road from the shop she often looked at the former shoe store and thought it would make a great cake shop.

So when the chance of redundancy from Lloyds arose she took it. The shop, offering cakes, ingredients, supplies like utensils and aprons opened in December last year. It also offered workshops so customers could improve their own cake making skills.

Victoria is helped by her parents Susie and Steve, who met when they worked at the Adver. Susie bakes while Steve, a graphic designer by trade, decorates the cakes.

Now with the easing of lockdown they are open again and starting to take orders for celebration events next year. They are also supplying cakes for the nearby Abbey Café and working with florist Persephone Violet

Victoria said: “We’ve kept our heads above water, which was all we intended to do during lockdown and we have adapted the business.”

The shop was nominated for Trader of the Week by customer Danielle Nie, who said: "During lockdown they were taking nominations, ie NHS workers and key workers to receive free cupcakes and delivering them.They did this every week even though they weren't open.

"They are amazing and very helpful nothing is too much to ask. They are very small and do a lot for charity and key workers."

If you want to nominate a local firm that has gone over and above for customers or community to be our Trader of the Week just fill in our online form here.