*Editor's Note- In a previous version of this story Chloe Longmire said Classy Girls Cupcakes by Cathedral Square in Milwaukee made a cake free of charge. Longmire was mistaken, it was paid for by a friend.
Chloe Longmire had a vision for her daughter Chase's 5th birthday party: Black girl magic. For the busy mom, the vision and the reality were two different things.
On a recommendation, she went through Sweet Perfections Bake Shoppe in Waukesha.
Longmire said she spoke with the decorator over the phone to explain what she wanted. To her delight, she was told an edible photo of her daughter could be used. She also provided a picture of a Black girl complete with pigtails and pink bows.
Her best friend went to pick up and the cake and discovered a picture of Chase with a huge pile of black frosting for hair.
Longmire was dismayed as it wasn't what she asked for and was upset that the person over the phone said everyone at the bakery loved the cake.
"It was basically a face and a bunch of hair. They could have put a star or sprinkles on it," Longmire told Patch.
Her daughter overheard her on the phone with the bakery and told her mom she needs a birthday cake. Longmire asked if they could make a fondant bow or something. Her friend said they tried to charge her for the fondant bows.
At first she wasn't offered an apology or a refund until after she made a social media post about what happened.
"It went a little more viral than I thought it ever would," Longmire said.
Racial implications?
What was upsetting for Longmire was the lack of customer service and the rudeness she felt. Yet it goes deeper than that for her.
"What is lost is the racial implications. Yes, my daughter has an afro naturally but in not one of the pictures I sent does she have one" Longmire said.
She added to "slap an afro on a little Black child," just didn't sit right with her.
"The assumption is the problematic aspect for me," Longmire said.
The other alarming part of her experience was social media. She read a remark that maybe this wasn't intentional but "casual racism."
"Not only is racism intentional and not only is it conscious but it is also subconscious," Longmire said.
Longmire said maybe the decorator didn't realize what they were doing but they should have asked questions.
Classy Girls Cupcakes by Cathedral Square in Milwaukee made a new cake for Longmire's daughter after reading the post. Longmire's friend paid for the cake.
"Representation matters and for her (daughter) to see the (Classy Girls) cake made a world of difference for me," Longmire said.
Longmire hopes is there is sensitivity training for the bakery or at least an explanation to staff about why the first cake was insensitive. She was eventually given an apology by the owner and an offer for a complimentary cake.
"It wasn't about a mom being upset because she didn't get her way, but because it was offensive and insulting," Longmire said.
The bakery owners Peggy and Ken Heil directed Patch to a public statement on Facebook:
"This past weekend we delivered a custom cake to a customer that met neither their standards, nor ours. Our initial response to the complaint was unacceptable. For these failures, we sincerely apologize.
As a small business whose mission is to bring joy to people, however small or large the event, it has never been our intent to bring any pain, suffering, or offense to you, our valued customers.
We have spoken directly to the customer, apologized, and issued a full refund of their purchase, and offered complimentary goods.
We know this does not fix what happened, or absolve us of responsibility. We cannot change the past, but we can, and will, work to be better in the future. We have taken steps to make our processes more error-proof to ensure this does not happen again, and we are working on new training with our customer service staff to provide a better experience for all.
We apologize for not getting it right the first time. We heard your frustration, we are listening, and we will do better."
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Offensive And Insulting, Mom Says Of Birthday Cake - Waukesha, WI Patch
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