First Look: Sugar Plum Fairy Cakes

Posted on 22 April, 2022

Some brands give little away with their shopfronts, perhaps missing out on the opportunity to grab the attention of passers-by.

But that won’t be an issue for Hall’s newest resident—the deliciously lilac, flower-adorned Sugar Plum Fairy Cakes.

“I really wanted to create a space that matched the whimsical style of my cakes and would brighten peoples’ day,” explains Courtney Hayden, Sugar Plum’s founder. And brighten the day it does—and that’s before you’re served coffee and cake.

Located on the main street of Hall Village, this might be Courtney’s first shopfront, but Sugar Plum Fairy Cakes has been amassing fans at markets and on Instagram since Courtney made her first cake order in 2016.

“I started Sugar Plum Fairy Cakes in 2016 as a hobby while I worked as a Government Lawyer and it steadily grew into a proper side hustle,” laughs Courtney.

Thankfully, the rise of COVID in 2020 didn’t affect business as much as anticipated. In fact, it proved fertile ground for expansion and helped Courtney crystalise what the future could hold.

“When COVID hit and things were looking a little uncertain, I thought, why not bake more? I started doing pre-sale cupcake orders for the weekends ahead and it absolutely took off!”

“Many an iso-box was purchased and, whilst I really loved my team and my job in the public service, I decided to give this cake business a real shot. With my family and team’s permission, I took a years’ leave without pay and decided to set up a premises for baking—just to see if I could make it work!”

With the assistance of Procision Projects, Courtney and her baking talents now call Hall Village home—a location chosen for a heartfelt reason.

“Hall Village is special to me because I grew up just down the road in Wallaroo, at Willowmere Estate, which is nestled between Pankhurst Wines and Brindabella Hills Winery,” she explains.

“I used to catch the Transborder bus, which stops at Hall, to and from primary school and spent many hours browsing the Hartley Hall markets or the shelves of the old rural supply store, Hall Stockfeeds, with my Dad.”

“I totally jumped at the opportunity to open my store in Hall, not only because of the warm fuzzies being back in that beautiful village gives me, but because there are a huge number of female-owned and managed businesses on the main street alone! It’s such a special place and I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the local community once again.”

While the shopfront was originally just that—a place for customers to pick up their special occasion cakes (which are a specialty of Courtney’s), she says it “quickly grew into a place where people can come to pick up some beautiful home baked goodies and delicious coffee, along with their custom cake orders” with Sugar Plum Fairy Cakes now selling cupcakes, cookies, brownies and other treats served with a side of ONA Coffee.

“I also sell locally grown, seasonal fresh flowers and produce from my mum’s farm Wild Blooms Farm, located just down the road in Murrumbateman,” she adds. “There are a few tables and chairs out the front in the little courtyard and I will soon have some bench seating on the footpath at the front of the store.”

Courtney also has plans to host workshops at Wild Blooms Farm—keep an eye on her website for upcoming events.

For Courtney, the shop is so much more than a bakery. It’s a chance to give back to the community that shaped her childhood.

“It’s a place for me to bake but also a place for generations to meet over sweet treats, parents and children to come for afternoon tea, commuters to swing by for a coffee on their way to or from work, or anyone who wants to come in and have a chat and a laugh with me.”

Photography: Codie Murray Photography