By EMILY REED / Special to the Reporter

ALABASTER – When Jonathan and Kristal Bryant relocated their business K&J’s Elegant Pastries to a portion of historic downtown Alabaster earlier this year, business boomed.

“We were expecting the business to gradually grow when we moved into our new location, but we were not expecting it to just take off,” said Kristal Bryant. “We are truly in awe of what has happened since we have moved, and our customers continue to shower us with love and support and we are very thankful for that.”

The business first opened off of Kent Dairy Road in Alabaster where it was open for more than three years before relocating to First Street South.

The store held an official grand opening Feb. 18, and business has rapidly grown since then, according to Bryant.

“When we were at the old store, we required a one week notice for most cake orders, sometimes two weeks, but we are now booked solid for the next four weeks,” Bryant said. “Our business has almost tripled. I am in the process of looking for additional cake decorators to help me, but right now we telling people they need to place an order about a month in advance.”

K&J’s sells custom cakes for any occasion including birthdays, gender reveals, weddings, baby showers, and more.

The store also sells other sweet treats including cinnamon rolls, a daily assortment of cupcakes including strawberry, cookies and cream, sweet potato, and chicken and waffle, as well as the popular “Kolossal” milkshake, which comes in nine different flavors.

“We started sharing pictures and videos of our shakes on social media, and those really took off,” Bryant said. “We have so many requests for the shakes, and those have quickly become a popular item. Our cupcakes are also very popular and we alternate which flavors we offer each day. We have about 40 different flavors, but we offer different kinds each day, and we will post which ones we have on our Facebook page.”

Currently, Bryant makes 20 custom cakes each week and two wedding cakes every weekend, in addition to various catering events for businesses throughout the area.

Bryant credits social media and word of mouth to helping the business grow, and she works daily to make sure her sweet treats live up to the hype.

“You can make something that looks great but does not taste good at all,” Bryant said. “I want to make sure that what we offer not only looks great, but tastes great as well.”

Bryant’s sister, Gloria Smith, helps bake the cakes for Bryant, and other family members including Bryant’s parents, and daughters also help with the business.

“It is definitely a family affair around here,” Bryant said. “Everyone plays a part, and everyone has a very valuable role.”

The business is just part of several buildings being renovated in old downtown Alabaster along the south end of the Medical Mile district off U.S. 31.

“We love the new location, and just being here off of Highway 31 has opened us up to different areas in Shelby County,” Bryant said. “We have definitely seen an increase in customers stopping by. We went from 6,000 likes on Facebook to 11,000 likes and counting. Our customers have been so kind to us, and we are incredibly blessed.”

K&J’s Elegant Pastries is located at 236 First St. S. For more information on ordering a cake, visit www.kjselegantpastries.com, Facebook or Instagram by searching K&J’s Elegant Pastries, or by calling 663-4827.