Starting business no piece of cake

Taking the cake: Mobile cupcake trucks are on a roll, still causing a craze in cities from New York to Austin to Los Angeles. But one entrepreneur is hitting speed bumps in her drive to operate a cupcake truck in Galveston.

Emily Giffin was ready to open her 20-foot-long Little Miss Cupcake truck somewhere on the seawall. But because her business isn’t in a conventional retail shop, it falls under a category city officials refer to as “Peddlers and Temporary Concessions.”

City officials said such mobile operations can operate on the island only from March through October. It appears from the ordinance the rules are meant to protect existing island businesses from temporary vendors. The rules apply to businesses renting space on private lots. City officials did not immediately return phone calls.

Giffin, an island resident, finds the rules a bit harsh. She wants to sell her cupcakes year-round. As she waits to open her business, she’s seeking a sweet spot to rent, she said.

Meanwhile, in other cities, mobile cupcake businesses are hot. The obvious appeal of mobile trucks — especially for aspiring entrepreneurs like Giffin — is the low overhead. Giffin was inspired by Hey Cupcake!, a growing Austin fleet of retrofitted Airstream trailers to which consumers flock for confections.

When Giffin finally does roll out a smartly decorated Little Miss Cupcake truck, she plans to serve up such treats as “Beach Bum,” a butter cake with chocolate icing and the “Berry Bomb,” a strawberry cake with cream cheese icing. As she waits for permits, Giffin is catering.

“I want my niche to be Galveston,” she said.

For information, call 281-546-0834. Want to talk about it? Visit Buzz Blog at galvnews.com.

Beer buzz: After years as the only “dry” Kroger in Friendswood, the supermarket at 151 N. Friendswood Drive is expected to get its first shipment of beer and wine any day now, officials report.

“We’re confident we’ll be able to sell beer and wine in our stores before the Christmas holidays, hopefully sometime next week,” spokesman Rebecca King said in an e-mail last week.

Other Friendswood Kroger stores have long sold alcohol. But the North Friendswood Drive store is in a corridor along FM 518 between FM 528 and FM 2351, where alcohol sales were forbidden until Nov. 3, when voters lifted the ban.

FYI on f. y. e: Technology, changing consumer habits and the recession is bringing down another retail store at Mall of the Mainland in Texas City. Music and DVD store f.y.e. (for your entertainment) will close in January as part of parent company Trans World Entertainment Corp.’s efforts to close 125 underperforming shops.

Biz Buzz appears Tuesdays and Thursdays. We welcome your tips and suggestions. Call 409-683-5248 or e-mail laura.elder(at)galvnews.com.