Life After Competition: URC Flourish Pilipinas Winner Talks About Starting Her Dream Baking Business

In this world, there are dreamers and there are doers—and twentysomething Sandra Camille Montenegro is definitely the latter. 

In February 2023, Sandra launched the online bakery she’d been dreaming of since her high school days: Essi Bakes. But getting there meant juggling college and her job (she’s a working student), and joining a competition she believed could help jumpstart her bakery dreams—URC Flourish Pilipinas 2022: The CEO Initiative. 

This is the story of how Sandra turned her URC Flourish Pilipinas 2022 experience into the sweetest chapter of her life. 

The Birth of Essi Bakes

“Since high school, I already knew what I wanted to be in the future, and that was to become a pastry chef and entrepreneur,” Sandra said in an interview. As a high school student, she would join various baking competitions, squeezing these in amid her academic responsibilities and extracurricular commitments. Back then, however, Sandra had yet to clinch a victory. 

Last year, her passion for baking and hard work finally came to fruition as Sandra won the Manila leg of URC Flourish Pilipinas 2022. The competition, which harnessed her baking skills and entrepreneurial know-how, became the stepping stone for her to open her online bakeshop. So, two months after the contest—and despite Sandra’s hectic schedule—Essi Bakes was officially open for business.

“Studying while working and [operating a business] is not easy,” shared Sandra, who is currently a fourth-year college student. “Yet, I’m committed to pursuing my passion for making cakes and pastries with Essi Bakes. URC Flour helped jumpstart my journey as an entrepreneur, and I plan to keep going until I finally open a [physical] cake and pastry shop and help my community.” 

Today, Essi Bakes has become a go-to for people seeking personalized desserts. Its specialties include delectable customized cakes, number cakes that celebrate babies’ milestones, and the crowd-favorite “bento cake”—a smaller and affordable Korean-inspired dessert that’s great for individual servings.  

A lifelong learner, Sandra treats her customers’ feedback like gold. “Feedback means opportunities to improve, and my customers’ input can help me strive more for the betterment of Essi Bakes,” she explained. “I consider myself in a continuous process of learning the business with the help of my customers.”

Lessons from URC Flourish Pilipinas 2022

One of the most important lessons Sandra learned from her URC Flourish Pilipinas 2022 experience is that to be a successful baker, knowing how to bake is just a part of it. Success in the baking business means one should know how to make a profit.  

During the 2022 iteration of URC Flourish Pilipinas, the competition had three “phases,” and all three became educational experiences for the young baker. 

According to Sandra, in the first phase of the contest, she learned technical skills in basic baking knowledge, such as bakery math, and then used these to innovate new recipes. Her winning creation was called “3 Cs,” a scrumptious cookies ‘n’ cream treat with corn.

In Phase 2, she underwent a crash course in the business side of baking. Sandra said this portion of the competition was the most memorable for her since she learned skills like product costing and digital marketing. All of “which I am now applying to Essi Bakes,” she pointed out. 

In the final phase, Sandra said she was taught how to create sound and effective business plans. During this time, she used all of what she had learned from the three phases to pitch a bakery business to a panel of experts. 

The conclusion? Sandra went home with the grand prize: P400,000 worth of startup capital, top-of-the-line baking equipment, and high-quality baking ingredients; and, most importantly, access to mentors such as executives Nicanor Ines, Lai Santos, and Chinkee Andres from the URC Flour research and development, finance, and marketing departments. The last one, she explained, has become very useful in establishing and expanding Essi Bakes. 

From left to right: Alaura Daele Pabandero (Finalist), Ellison Dean C. Lee (Managing Director, URC Flour), Sandra Camille Montenegro (Grand Winner), Marilyn Grande Esguerra (R&D Chapter Lead Snackfoods, URC), Jeremy Garcia (Finalist), and Dennis J. Magallanes (Deputy Chief Financial Officer, URC Agro-Industrial and Commodity Foods Group)

“[My favorite is the online financial mentorship] because costing can get difficult,” Sandra said. “I apply the lessons to Essi Bakes and to my management classes in school. Being ahead of my classmates and competitors is really an advantage.”

She added: “[URC Flour taught me that] starting a business is like building a house. The process and expenses will burn holes in your pocket, but proper planning and expense allocation can help you surpass hurdles. Also, bad feedback is okay. It should help motivate you to improve.”

For her fellow aspiring baker-entrepreneurs, Sandra shared this important piece of advice: "Don't be afraid to fail! Failing is more rewarding than not trying at all.” 

For those who want to follow in this young baker-business owner’s footsteps and make their bakery business dreams come true, don’t be afraid to seize opportunities that come your way, including this year’s URC Flourish Pilipinas competition.

Get ready for URC Flourish Pilipinas 2023

Sandra's journey from URC Flourish Pilipinas victor to successful online bakery owner is a testament to the transformative power of grit, passion, and the right support. 

More aspiring baker-entrepreneurs are ready to turn their dreams into reality as they join URC Flourish Pilipinas 2023: Bida Sa Masa. The community baking competition has three legs—Pasig, Sariaya, and Davao—with each leg having three phases comprised of workshops and challenges. 

Phase 1 for the Davao leg began last August 29, for the Pasig leg last September 12, and for the Sariaya leg last September 20. The second started on October 4, while Phase 3 will start on November 8. 

This year, there will be a Battle of the Champions where the winners from each leg will compete. The two-day event will be on December 6 and 7 at Baker John Academy.

Prizes up for grabs include startup capital for a home business, state-of-the-art baking tools and equipment, high-quality ingredients and consumables, plaques, and certificates.

Let’s watch these young bakers take their first step toward a sweet and successful future, backed by the mentorship and support of URC Flour!

Check out Essi Bakes on Facebook and TikTok. Follow URC Flourish Pilipinas on Facebook to get the latest updates. Learn more about URC Flour through its Facebook and YouTube.