Do-it-yourself cake decorating is already a big hit in the USA. Now, new company Cake Décor, based in Glasgow, is set to capitalise on this growing trend in the UK.

"Bakers can look to the major seasons as a way of introducing novelty and profit to their business," says Cake Décor managing director, Bill Donnelly. "In recent years, decorating products at Easter has become increasingly popular, for the simple reason that people can customise their celebration cakes, cookies and Easter eggs and it’s a fun way for parents to spend quality time with their kids."

Cake Décor, has secured major contracts to supply leading supermarkets, plant bakeries and confectioners throughout the UK and Europe with the easy-to-use icing tubes. As well as being used by professional cake decorators, they appeal to consumers wanting to personalise Easter eggs and bakery goods. A range of icing tubes are made for a variety of users: piping icings are produced for more intricate rosettes and soft icings are made for children’s hand-writing. They can also be used to decorate licensed characters, such as Spiderman with red and blue icing, and Winnie the Pooh with honey-flavoured icing.

Produced at Cake Décor’s site in Westfield Park, Glasgow, the icing tubes come in a range of natural colours, including red, yellow, green, baby blue, baby pink, black, white, orange, and Barbie pink, gold and silver. The firm has also developed a range of naturally flavoured icings, including chocolate, lemon and mint. All are nut-free, egg-free and contain no artificial colourings, no trans fatty acids and no genetically modified ingredients.

"With the use of these naturally coloured icing tubes, an all-year-round product can become seasonally specific - for example a yellow colour for Easter, red for Valentine’s Day, black and orange for Halloween, and green and red for Christmas," says Donnelly. "It’s a quick and easy way for bakers and plant bakeries to introduce new products. At Easter, for example, the baker can sell a yellow colour icing tube along with a cup cake, so the consumer can draw on their own Easter egg, bunny or personal message.

Donnelly, who set up the company last year, has over 20 years’ experience in the food industry and was formerly director and general manager of Renshaws, one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of cake coverings. Funding support for the company’s launch came from UK Steel Enterprise (UKSE), the Corus subsidiary, which encourages economic regeneration. "With the UKSE funding, I was able to invest in state-of-the-art machinery, which has given us a tremendous competitive edge," says Donnelly. "We are able to produce hundreds of thousands of tubes of icing per day and this has already enabled us to secure several substantial contracts."