Table for Two
4. LeShawn Smith: Divine Intervention from Stephen Colbert
LeShawn (Shawnnie) Smith took a leap of faith when she left the corporate world to start a boutique bakery in Cedar Rapids’ Newbo City Market. She quickly made her mark in the local food scene with toffee butter cookies and lemon pound cake. With her Mama Pearl at her side, she invested both financial and sweat equity into her dream. However, her dream was nearly squelched by the pandemic. Because she was a new business, she didn’t qualify for any assistance. When nearly all hope was lost, help came from the unlikeliest of places—late night talk show host Stephen Colbert who featured Shawnniecakes as a “deserving small business to support” during COVID. That led to shout outs from other celebrities including Gayle King. Online orders kept her business alive and today she’s back on a growth path, ready to expand to a larger location and the addition of breakfast and lunch service.
LeShawn (Shawnnie) Smith took a leap of faith when she left the corporate world to start a boutique bakery in Cedar Rapids’ Newbo City Market. She quickly made her mark in the local food scene with toffee butter cookies and lemon pound cake. With her Mama Pearl at her side, she invested both financial and sweat equity into her dream. However, her dream was nearly squelched by the pandemic. Because she was a new business, she didn’t qualify for any assistance. When nearly all hope was lost, help came from the unlikeliest of places—late night talk show host Stephen Colbert who featured Shawnniecakes as a “deserving small business to support” during COVID. That led to shout outs from other celebrities including Gayle King. Online orders kept her business alive and today she’s back on a growth path, ready to expand to a larger location and the addition of breakfast and lunch service.