Worthing cake business: Our reporter taste tests brownies and blondies – here's what she thought

​Flourish, a cakes and sweet treats company, was taken over by Ali Meyer and Abi Pelling just five months ago – and they have already got big plans for the future.

The pair met when they worked for a larger food production firm, and instantly clicked. They said they had similar dreams, and knew they would work well together. They decided to look for a business to run together, and when Flourish came up for sale, they decided to take the leap and become business partners.

Ali said: “We wanted something that we knew was going to grow. The lady who started the business did such a good job, but we knew we could build on that.

"It was a big thing for us to do together, to take that risk, but we wanted to do it to make ourselves the people we want to be.

"We want to be able to be creative, and see the products through from start to finish. We want to be able to prioritise our mental health and our families, and even though we’re working very hard, we can do this running this business together.”

Part of the pair’s strategy is to specialise in gluten-free and vegan brownies. They said there was a gap in the market for cake firms catering so widely for people with different food allergies and intolerances, and they wanted to capitalise on that.

They now offer a large range of brownies and blondies that are either gluten-free or vegan, and some can be both.

They also make celebration and event cakes, and sell their products at markets across Sussex, and in cafés and food businesses in both Worthing and Brighton.

And they have plans to grow further. Abi said: “We’re now looking at doing keto brownies, and those suitable for diabetics. And we’d like to do something like gym snacks, so things that are high in protein.

"We’re trying out lots of different recipes, but we need to make sure they’re just as tasty as regular brownies before we release them.

"Quality is so important to us, and it’s what makes our products special.”

In the future, the friends are also considering opening a Flourish shop.

Abi went to catering college and did a culinary arts degree, while Ali is a self-taught baker. Together, they produce hundreds of brownies, blondies, cupcakes, biscuits and large celebration cakes from their unit in the Hambridge Trading Estate every day.

Their most popular bake is their gluten-free salted caramel brownie, while the snickers brownie (which is gluten-free and vegan) is also proving popular.

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A box of six sells from £16.75, while customers can purchase a single brownie for just £3 from one of the girls’ market stalls.

And while they are incredibly busy – there are a lot of 12 to 14-hour days – they said they are glad they made the change.”We just work really, really well together,” Ali said. “I think you can tell when people love what they do. The difference in the quality of the products, the service, just everything is incredible.

"And we love doing this."