Residing in Nassau, the capital city of the Bahamas, Kay Charlton Cleare is a wife, mother, author and entrepreneur who is passionate about encouraging, motivating, building and uplifting women and men to be all that they are called to be.
A certified baker & culinary chef whose expertise is in event planning, catering, and sales, in addition to growing her own businesses (The Hygiene Place and The Pastry Place), Kay is kept busy raising 3 beautiful and incredible children to pursue their purpose in life and also supporting her husband in his entrepreneurial pursuits (Founder of Aquatic Services International Risk Management, a company that offers CPR training and certification individually and to organizations).
She attributes her success in managing all her personal and professional responsibilities to her belief and commitment to putting all she has in for the best results. This drive has come from her involvement in global marketing, and through her active participation and contribution to “Mother Me”, a women’s organization in the Bahamas.
Kay also credits her success to her spiritual beliefs, and her daily commitment to walk in the way of righteousness.
For more details, send her an email here and click here to visit their website.
Here we sit down with Kay, to know a bit more about her journey as an entrepreneur.
Q. Tell us a little more about your journey as an entrepreneur – how did you get started? What inspired you?
Kay: For many years I desired to be an entrepreneur and was doing it on a small
scale as a hobby. However, when my son was pursuing his university career and I was in search of employment to secure finances for his dream of attending university to become a reality and something happened. I was not successful in finding employment. This was when I realized I was being called into the entrepreneur world. Because as a mother I was not about to let my son’s dream die, so I did what I was passionate about (cooking & baking).
In the midst of being able to pay for my son’s tuition, I also found financial stability and a passion for being a young business owner as a certified Pastry Chef of The Pastry House.
As mothers am sure many can relate with me as to, wanting what’s best for our children and going all the way for it to happen and this is what I did. I now own one of the most successful bakeries in the Bahamas.
Q. What’s one thing in your routine that you do consistently that has made a huge difference in your personal or business life?
Kay: Firstly it begins with belief. Believing that you can and putting your faith in God. I am a strong believer in prayers and prayers have certainly carried me thus far.
I also retain as much knowledge as possible in my field of specialization, whether it be research, practice, or active work.
I am often engaging in women’s groups and conferences because I believe in building and supporting women and sharing the knowledge I have gained from life experiences to uplift and build mothers.
Q. Who are your mentors and inspiration? and what knowledge or insight did they give to you that was valuable?
Kay: My inspiration is my future self. A person who reaches others and uplifts them with motivation and encouragement to be the best version of themselves, to never give up, and trust the process. My future self is a best-selling author of multiple books, a world-renowned speaker, a top-class pastry chef, and an amazing person to family and everyone around me. I find myself helping people I don’t even know, especially women and I realize that it’s a part of my purpose.
I find myself counselling, guiding, and sharing. My time is valuable so putting it towards the growth of Mothers and women is truly a part of my purpose.
Q. What has been your most satisfying moment in business?
Kay: Being responsible for putting smiles on customers’ faces as well as my own.
Q. How do you market your business, and which tactics have been most successful?
Kay: Social Media.
Q. What has been your biggest failures or challenges?
Kay: Building clients and finding out what system works best for me.
Q. How did this failure, or apparent failure, set you up for later success?
Kay: It set me up to learn how to market my business on a consistent basis, and to have operational systems in place.
Q. If someone was to create a TV show about you, what would it be about and what would it be called?
Kay: It would be about a woman who keeps on going, no matter what obstacle she is faced with. I would call it “Living With A Purpose”
To keep up to date with Kay and her journey, connect with her on Tiktok.