Hone Bakes: How a 26-year-old is bringing her mother’s dream to life
- The brainchild of Chew Yi En, 26, and her mother, Hoh Wei Lee, 56, Hone Bakes is a home-based bakery known for its inventive flavours and heartfelt creations.
- It marks the duo’s first step towards realising Wei Lee’s lifelong dream of owning a cafe.
- They chat with us about the inception of Hone Bakes, the inspiration behind their bakes and what’s next for them.
Like many of us, Chew Yi En thought that her future would follow the conventional route – graduate from university, land a stable corporate job and build herself a secure career. But after two years in the corporate world where she worked in food media, the 26-year-old found herself unfulfilled and yearned for a pursuit that she resonated with.
That longing led to the birth of Hone Bakes.
Hoh Wei Lee, Yi En’s mother, was a big driving force behind the inception of the bakery. The 56-year-old used to run her own home-based bakery — called Wei Lee’s Passion — during the Covid-19 pandemic. This was when home-baking saw a surge in popularity and in turn cultivated Yi En’s interest in baking.
The interest quickly developed into a passion that Yi En actively pursued, even while in school. What started as a casual hobby quickly evolved into small bake sales, where she found joy in the process of baking and sharing her creations.
“I liked that I could experiment with different flavours and textures,” she says. “Seeing people get satisfaction through our bakes was also very enjoyable.”
Curating flavours with creativity and tradition
Gateau cakes are one of the more popular items at Hone Bakes. Inspired by Yi En’s trip to Korea, these cakes feature a rich filling sandwiched between thick layers of sponge cake.
Realising her rendition was missing an “oomph” factor and driven by a desire to create something unique, Yi En added homemade mochi in between the dense cake layers to give the cake a chewy, textural contrast.
“It’s quite a laborious process,” she says. Many components are involved, including a mochi layer, biscuit crumb, cream toppings and sponge cake. Nonetheless, she enjoys the step-by-step process of bringing the dessert to life.
Yi En’s creativity and Wei Lee’s expertise blend well together — something that we can see from Hone’s menu — allowing them to cater to diverse tastes.
“Older people think gateau cakes are too dense. They are more appreciative of our chiffon cakes, which are lighter,” said Yi En. The chiffon cakes are part of her mother’s specialty, having mastered the recipe in her earlier baking days.
Taking the leap
But it’s been quite the journey for Yi En to get to where she is today.
In order to fully focus on her full-time job after graduating in 2020, she found herself putting baking on hold.
But this quickly left her feeling stagnant and she found herself wanting to pursue a career she felt more passionate about.
Eventually, she made the bold decision to leave that stability behind to pursue her passion: Baking and to help fulfil her mother’s lifelong dream.
“My mother has always wanted to own her own cafe, and this felt like a necessary first step,” Yi En said.
Yi En was initially hesitant. She was plagued with financial concerns and was apprehensive about Singapore’s competitive food scene.
“Ultimately, I thought that I was still young and I could always bounce back,” she says.
The transition from a stable full-time role to running her own home-based business wasn’t easy. Adjusting to the unpredictability of being her own boss and working long hours — from baking to managing social media — was a tedious process.
Yi En was initially very cautious about talking about her work, because of the perception that home-based businesses may not be unstable.
“Sometimes, when I see my peers doing well in their corporate jobs, I do feel a bit sian (weary),” Yi En says. “But passion is more important and my only regret is that I didn’t start earlier.”
Yi En finds encouragement in moments of connection with customers and consistent support from regulars, family and friends. She recalls a memorable moment when a customer presented her with a drawing of their gateau cakes during a pop-up event, which deeply touched her — so much so that the art piece is now a cherished item.
Bringing their dreams to life
So far, the move has paid off. Even though Hone Bakes launched recently, in March 2024, the brand has quickly gained recognition.
Hone Bakes’ month-long pop-up at the Baker X incubation space at Orchard Central was a significant milestone for Yi En and Wei Lee.
It gave the pair the chance to see their brand in a formal, cafe-like setting, as well as baking outside the comforts of their own kitchen.
“During the first week, we had no idea what to expect, so our time management wasn’t the best,” Yi En recalls. “We left Baker X at 4am and would come back at 9am.”
But the experience was a momentous and cherished one for the mother-daughter duo — from seeing posters featuring their bakes hung up across the mall, to selling out early.
Most importantly, it gave them real-time exposure and practical experience.
“We didn’t know what the demand of the crowd would be like,” Yi En says, reflecting on the experience. “Sometimes you bake a lot of one item, but actually people want another item and it gets sold out.”
The road ahead
The duo have started viewing potential spaces, but mentioned that they’ve put a hold on their cafe plans for now due to high rental costs.
So while a physical space may still be some ways away for Hone Bakes, Yi En and Wei Lee are optimistic about opening a cafe eventually. In the meantime, she continues to refine her menu and explore opportunities such as home-cafe events, inspired by a similar trend in Australia.
For now, Hone Bakes remains a thriving home-based business, with its bake slots fully booked out until next year. Customers can place their orders via direct message on Instagram, but these are subject to availability.
Keep your eyes peeled, as the duo is working tirelessly to bring new flavours and creations to bring something new to their customers during festive seasons.
For more ideas on what to explore, check out the top HungryGoWhere stories in 2024 and our Orchard Central food guide. Alternatively check out the newest openings in Singapore.
You can also book a ride to Hone Bakes.
Hone Bakes
Place an order via DM at its Instagram page to arrange for collection.
Place an order via DM at its Instagram page to arrange for collection.