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Today we’d like to introduce you to Leyla Yildizci. 

Hi Leyla, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Food is a passion of mine and has been my whole life. I have been preparing and serving food on my own for as long as I can remember. I have been doing this as a part of my daily life. I enjoy the process, prep, and basically everything about it. 

It was mid-2016 when my husband came home one day and told me about a family friend who had opened a Turkish grocery store. We gave a few visits and the owner asked if I could prepare some baked goods for him to sell in his store in order to drive business. I agreed and started to prepare Turkish pastries and baked goods for him. To name a few, I prepared Simit; a Turkish-style bagel with sesame seeds. I also prepared borek; a pastry with different stuffings. I prepared about 10 Simit and 12 Borek; among other pastries. They quickly sold out and asked for more. We were surprised to see how quick they had sold out. We kept the momentum going and kept it up for about a year; working from home. I would prepare the pastries and my husband, Salih, would deliver them. 

The orders were getting bigger and bigger and we realized that we couldn’t keep up from home. With a regular home oven, it was extremely hard to keep up because I was working at night and sleeping during the day. We decided to take over a commercial bakery and start production over there. It was a relief but we had no idea what was waiting for us in the upcoming months. 

We weren’t aware of the midst of things but we transitioned from just a few pastries a day to now having fixed orders for the week. People were hearing of what we had been making and one customer, in particular, wanted to meet us. He got our information from the store and headed on over to meet us on his way to work the next morning. He asked if he could have 10 Simit. We were surprised to see him, as we didn’t do retail sales. We told him to wait and we started to prepare it for him. He asked if he could have 1 of his Simit in the bakery before he headed out. It wasn’t the most pleasant environment to have a seat in but we allowed for it anyhow. It is a tradition in our culture to offer a cup of tea for guests and so we did. He kindly took the offer but also asked for some jam, cheese, or breakfast items on the side to eat with his Simit. We told him that we usually don’t offer this but we had brought some for our own breakfast, and so we shared. He enjoyed this gesture so much that he asked to bring his wife with him the next morning to have a fresh borek out of the oven with her. They came by the next morning and ate together; also taking pictures. 

A few days passed by and we received a call from someone else. He introduced himself and told us that he would bring 3 families in for breakfast. We were surprised and a little confused as we told him that it isn’t our area of work. He said he saw us on Facebook and that we offered breakfast. We understood then that the person we had hosted earlier had posted on Facebook. We told him that we didn’t have any chairs, tables; nor was the space suitable to serve customers. He told us that it wasn’t his problem and that we should go to IKEA and buy a table and chairs. We were surprised because we didn’t know who this person was but also didn’t want to turn him down. That was the end of the conversation and we were looking at each other with my husband thinking of what we can do. Later that week my husband bought a set of tables and chairs and I prepared a breakfast that I would prepare for any guest. Our guests showed up and they were astonished. They stayed a couple of hours and took plenty of pictures. 

We didn’t think much of it and let them have their fun. A week later one of their guests called and asked if they could make a “reservation” to bring in their family for breakfast. We couldn’t understand at first and told them that we had only done this for one time. They insisted and so we accepted. 

We were called by a few other families and ended up hosting them as well. We had no clue but were on our way to becoming a big breakfast spot in a small area. We slowly had to add to our inventory and decided that we would host breakfast parties with a reservation-only basis. With the power of social media and word of mouth, we started to blow up. I continued to do what I was good at and sure enough within about 6 months, we were the talk in the area. We transitioned the small bakery into a hot new brunch restaurant. It wasn’t the prettiest of interiors but we did what we could with what we had. 

During weekends we had to hold waitlists and didn’t fit in our small area anymore. We knew that we had to expand. We decided to move and got in touch with a real estate agent to move forward. She also happened to be a customer of ours. We found another location very close to our bakery so we bit the bullet and started the transition. It was a scary move to make but we were sure of ourselves. We were excited and towards the end of 2019, we signed our lease to the new location. 

All was going well until COVID-19 struck and we were left with no business. No dine-in and our wholesale operation could only make enough to survive. We had to go through construction costs, permitting costs, rent, and other expenses that come with the opening of a new location. We struggled but persisted and fought through. We had made it this far and weren’t going to give up. It wasn’t a part of our work ethic so we didn’t want it to be a part of our story either. We spoke with every bank and funding outlet that we could possibly find but were denied by every single one of them. Sure, our rent was rising, we were moving to a bigger place, but we had our documents to support it. Because of this, I don’t believe that banks should use the word “support”. They do business just like everyone else. The only support we saw was from SBA and Prince William County. We haven’t seen any support from any bank. Regardless, we found a way to make ends meet and with the help of friends and family, we opened up our new location towards the end of 2020. We didn’t expect much as we had been closed for 9 months; we thought our customers had forgotten about us. Contrary to our own belief, we were surprised and welcomed by so many customers that we couldn’t manage and closed early for the day. We hired more staff and went on our way. We have been blessed and continue to work hard to maintain the satisfaction and quality that we have provided. We’re only starting out and have no intentions of stopping. 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has been a rough path especially not coming from a business background, I’ve struggled to navigate through the paperwork and legal processes. My husband has been great help and he has helped me deal with majority of that.

ps. the story has a lot of details about the struggles as well.

As you know, we’re big fans of My Cravingz. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
We offer a traditional Turkish breakfast and serving like no other. We’ve introduced this traditional serving to the United States and are the first to make it. We have our own recipes of homemade jams and spreads. Our jams and spreads include no sugar, no additives, no sweetener or anything. They’re patent pending and we are proud of them for being one of a kind. 

How do you define success?
Success for me is being able to do what you love and find a way to make ends meet. It’s being able to work at your passion and craft. It is continuing and pushing for what you believe in, no matter what the obstacles are.