IT'S starting to feel like I'm driving around in circles. But, if Google Maps is correct, I should have already arrived at my destination. And yet, the signboard for Stun Flour Dessert Bar/Stun Spore Flower Store is nowhere to be seen. Never mind, I'll just park my car anyway and check out the row of shop lots.
Then it hits me. It's Sunday and the cafe isn't open on Sundays. Oh wait. I see it. Sharing a space with a clothing boutique is the dessert bar and flower store. The moment I walk in, owner Umar Hariz Muhamad Zulazhar, who'd been waiting for me at a table at the back, rises towards me with a warm welcome.
The moment the customary preambles are over, Umar happily fills me in about himself and the business. He's both animated and expressive, and his passion for his business is palpable. I note a trace of foreign accent as he speaks and can't help asking him if he studied abroad.
He chuckles before replying: "Maybe it's all the American shows I watched while growing up!" Umar has lived all his life in Shah Alam, Selangor, so it was only natural that when he decided to set up his cafe, his locale became his first choice.
His school years were also spent in this tranquil part of Selangor. After leaving school, this affable Taurus went on to enrol in the culinary arts course at Taylor's College before furthering to a degree at Taylor's University.
One of his internships, he shares, was with the (now defunct) Fancy Breakfast Club (FBC), a home-based private kitchen based in Bangsar, where he started baking and discovering that he had an aptitude for it. "It was while I was working in FBC that I started entertaining the idea of opening my own cafe," confides Umar, adding: "We were just opposite this small shop called Jaslyn Cakes in Bangsar. I thought to myself, 'Oh, Jaslyn is such a nice cafe. How I wish I could have a cafe like this'."
This was around six or seven years ago, he recalls, before telling me sharing that after leaving FBC, he started working at a flower shop. "I was just there for about three or four months, mostly handling all the emails that came in."
Smiling, Umar says it was unfortunate that he hasn't got the chance to work with flowers, but adds that he always found it thrilling to observe florists creating their floral arrangements. "I didn't learn the skills during my stint there. It was only after I quit the job that I started doing flowers arrangements at home. Before long, I began asking myself whether I'd make flower arrangements for people."
Not long after, his best friend called and asked him to make a bouquet for his girlfriend. And before he knew it, chuckles Umar, everyone started asking him to create bouquets for them. "It all grew from word of mouth," he shares, adding: "Looking back, I don't think my first bouquet of flowers was particularly pretty. But people actually liked my arrangements. That was how my interest in flowers grew, I guess."
DREAMS AND CHALLENGES
The only people who weren't initially enamoured by his new-found passion were his parents. "They were concerned," recalls Umar, elaborating: "My parents asked me, 'Are you sure you want to do this for the rest of your life at home? Just doing flowers? You have a degree. Why not use it? How about opening a cafe since you've always been thinking about it?'"
So, he did. "The idea was to open a florist/cafe," confides Umar, adding: "I was thinking of a small cafe where the focus would be on desserts. So, I opened a cafe called Stun Flour. At the same time, I sold flowers under Stun Spore Flower Store. It had a nice ring to it. I liked everything that rhymes. I actually opened my cafe, erm, sometime in 2017."
Sheepishly, he continues: "I've really lost track of time. I've been doing so many things in this cafe ever since I first opened it. In the past five years, we've held events, organised flower arranging classes, birthday celebrations, etc. We've even created small batches of flowers for our customers. It has been a lot of fun."
But then Covid-19 happened. "Yeah, business was really rocky during the pandemic," says Umar, tone laced with weariness.
Casting a furtive gaze around his charming cafe, I think to myself that considering it was opened back in 2017, Umar must be doing something right to have been able to overcome the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic. Business seems to be brisk.
"How did you survive the MCO?" I ask, referring to the Movement Control Order, which was imposed as a measure to restrict the spread of the pandemic in 2020.
His brows furrow as he recollects: "Oooh, that was tough. I had to find new ways of doing things and creating new products. Before that, we did customised cakes. Obviously, birthday celebrations became non-existent during the MCO. I eventually decided to make cream puffs, which came in several flavours — from original, custard-filled, salted caramel, Lotus Biscoff, Kinder Bueno and so on."
When his customers heard that he was selling cream puffs, they were very enthusiastic. He remembers: "Now they wanted people to deliver their food. So, I had to come here (to the cafe) every morning to make cream puffs. Each box had 30 pieces and I was making 10 boxes every day — alone. That's 300 cream puffs daily. During the MCO, my colleague couldn't come to work at the cafe because travelling across different districts wasn't allowed."
"No one helped you out?" I can't help asking.
Umar shakes his head, replying: "My sister helped me with the orders, but she can't bake. I did everything alone. That was how I maintained the shop. I could make money from cream puffs. I was really surprised that my cream puffs became a hit. Although it was tiring, it was also exhilarating. I actually enjoyed it."
Expression earnest, he recalls how he had to go shopping for ingredients every morning before heading to the cafe. "Every day was a slog right to late evening. And sales-wise, it was bad for me," shares Umar, adding softly: "I still had to pay salaries. I couldn't let my colleague go hungry. But I couldn't pay his salary in full as I had overheads to pay. It's still a struggle now. We're still trying to attract people to the cafe."
CREATING A NEW EXPERIENCE
These days, acknowledges Umar, people want more than just food. They want the whole works. Sighing, he elaborates: "If you notice, cafes around the Klang Valley now focus heavily on the aesthetics, in addition to the food, thanks to the popularity of TikTok videos, Instagram (IG) reels etc. It wasn't like that before the pandemic. I know I have to up my game. So, my next goal is to renovate the shop so it can be on par with the other cafes, offering just as exciting an experience, if not more!"
He admits that there's a lot of competition. His initial concept for his cafe was for it to be a cosy place where people could converge to enjoy chats with their friends, do a bit of work, maybe. Now he has to rethink the look and feel to make it more attractive and yes, IG-worthy.
"Well, I did learn at Taylor's that you eat first with your eyes, and then with your mouth," he muses, before adding: "In a way, appearances matter. Not to be superficial or anything, but it's true. They Google you and want to see how things look from the pictures. Previously I could rely on word of mouth, but with the rise of technology, people are used to getting information online."
Trends, he adds, change so fast. And it's challenging to keep up with it. However, Umar still rolls out his cakes which continue to be a hit with his customers. Bestselling items include the chocolate salted caramel cakes and milky berry flavoured cakes which are vanilla-based cakes with custard, blueberry and strawberry compote.
"Wow," I couldn't help muttering, as I try my hardest not to salivate. A smile lights up his face as he continues rattling off the names of the more popular selections here, making me half-suspect that he's doing it on purpose.
Continuing, he shares: "We have Victorian sponge flavour, onde-onde flavour, lychee, salted caramel with Earl Grey. People also like our sea salt brownies and salted caramel cream puffs. We used to serve hot food like pasta and sandwiches, but we don't do this much anymore. It's just me and my colleague and it is a small cafe. I try not to crowd the menu with a lot of choices. We prefer to focus on desserts."
MOTIVATION AND DRIVE
Asked what he regrets most, Umar pauses to reflect. He eventually replies: "I regret not putting more trust in people, and not hiring more people. Hiring another person would have made things smoother, I'm sure."
Continuing, he muses softly: "I enjoy seeing people enjoy my creations and talking about it to them. This motivates me. But at the same time, I also get insecure because I really want people to like what I make. I guess I have trust issues with people handling my creations. What if it doesn't turn out well? What if people don't like my food because someone else made it?"
But he's realising that he cannot do everything by himself. Umar admits he's beginning to learn that hiring and delegating responsibilities do come with advantages. Most notably, enabling him to have more time for himself and not feeling exhausted at the end of the day.
"I enjoy talking to people," he surmises simply before concluding: "It's about having the passion and seeing other people enjoy my creations, my desserts. That's what motivates me to keep going in this business, I guess. And what could be more beautiful than flowers and desserts combined!"
Stun Flour Dessert Bar / Stun Spore Flower Store is located at No.11, Jalan Wau A 11/A, Seksyen 11, Shah Alam, Selangor. Or follow the IG @stunflourstunspore.