It all started with love for baking

About Sugar Blooms & Cakes

Where family, Filipino flavours, and extraordinary cakes come together.

Sugar Blooms and Cakes Inc. began in August 2011 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, born from the passion, creativity, and determination of a mother-daughter duo: Genevieve Melegrito and Marie Mallari. What started as a love for baking would become a beloved Winnipeg cake shop—and a family legacy built one beautiful cake at a time.

The story began long before Sugar Blooms opened its doors.

Meet Genevieve Melegrito

While living in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, Genevieve discovered her passion for baking and, in 1995, turned that passion into a thriving cake business. Her cakes and pastries quickly became favourites throughout the city, earning her a loyal following that included Papua New Guinea’s Governor General and First Lady. For Genevieve, baking was never simply about making something sweet—it was about creating something memorable.

In 2004, the family made Winnipeg their new home. Seven years later, Genevieve took that same passion and opened the first Sugar Blooms and Cakes location on Selkirk Avenue.

And Winnipeg quickly got a taste of what they could do.

As the demand grew, so did the dream. In August 2015, Sugar Blooms expanded to its McPhillips Street location, creating a space where their signature cakes, pastries, and Filipino-inspired flavours could be shared with an even bigger community.

At the heart of everything has always been Filipino home-baked goodness—the kind that feels nostalgic, comforting, and completely irresistible.

From the heavenly Ube Macapuno Cake, to the rich, creamy and chewy Sans Rival, and to the soft, pillowy Ensaymada, every bite carries a little piece of home.

Today, Sugar Blooms and Cakes is more than a cake shop. It is a family story, a celebration of Filipino flavour, and a place where imagination becomes something you can taste.

Meet Marie Melegrito-Mallari

From an unexpected detour to an award-winning cake artist, entrepreneur, and champion of fearless creativity.

Marie Mallari is a Filipino-Canadian cake artist, entrepreneur, and co-owner of Sugar Blooms and Cakes Inc. Known for her bold creativity and signature style, she brings together the rich flavours of her Filipino heritage with modern cake design to create showstopping edible art that captivates audiences around the world.

But Marie’s journey into cake artistry was anything but planned.

In 2012, Marie joined Sugar Blooms and Cakes almost by happy accident. At the time, she was preparing to become a Doctor of Chiropractic. While waiting to begin her studies, she decided to lend a hand at the family bakery. It was there that she discovered a natural talent for cake decorating—and quickly fell in love with the craft.

Marie ultimately made the bold decision to decline her acceptance to chiropractic school in the United States and pursue a completely different calling: the art of cake decorating.

Determined to develop her daughter’s talent, Genevieve sent Marie to learn from some of the most respected names in the cake-decorating world, including Margie Carter, Joshua John Russell, Handi Mulyana, Karen Portaleo, and Ron Ben-Israel.

These experiences helped shape Marie’s natural creativity into a highly refined craft, developing the technical precision, artistic confidence, and fearless approach that have become hallmarks of her work.

A Food Network Champion—Again and Again

Marie’s competitive cake journey has taken her to some of the biggest baking stages in the country—and she has proven time and again that she knows how to deliver under pressure.

In 2022, Marie led her team to victory on Food Network’s The Big Bake Holiday, Season 3.

The challenge was anything but ordinary: competitors were given just five hours to create a larger-than-life cake featuring dynamic elements, extraordinary design, and incredible flavour.

Marie and her team delivered—and took home the title of Big Bake Champions, along with the $10,000 grand prize.

But Marie wasn’t finished.

She later teamed up with Chef Jerome on Food Network’s Bake Master Battle, taking on another intense baking competition that challenged contestants through two demanding rounds of bakes, putting their technical skills, creativity, and ability to perform under pressure to the test.

For their competition entry, Marie and Chef Jerome brought Filipino flavours and storytelling to the table with Ube-Mango Waffles and an elaborate Filipino Garden Gnome scene, complete with delicate floral macarons and intricate tarts featuring miniature Filipino food-inspired designs.

Flavours such as calamansi and turon added a distinctly Filipino touch, transforming the competition bake into a celebration of culture, nostalgia, and creativity.

Another competition. Another stage. Another opportunity to show the world just how extraordinary Filipino-inspired baking can be.

Today, Marie is recognized as Manitoba’s only two-time Food Network champion and an international award-winning cake artist. Her work has taken her far beyond the traditional bakery, using cake as a powerful medium for storytelling—one rooted in culture, innovation, artistry, and connection.

Building the Future of Baking

Marie currently serves on the Program Advisory Boards of Red River Polytech and Manitoba Institute of Trades and Technology (MITT) and is a Skills Manitoba Judge for the Baking category, helping shape the future of the industry and inspire emerging culinary professionals.

From an unexpected afternoon helping out at her family’s bakery to becoming a nationally recognized champion and international cake artist, Marie’s journey is a testament to the power of following the path that feels right—even when it is not the path you originally planned.

More Than Cake

Beyond the kitchen, Genevieve and Marie are passionate about empowering women in business, championing the next generation of creatives, and reshaping what leadership in the culinary industry can look like.

Through their platform, they both encourage others to embrace authenticity, build confidence, and pursue their creative vision unapologetically. They that success is not simply about creating something beautiful—it is about having the courage to create something that is uniquely your own.

Whether designing an extravagant edible installation, competing on national television, mentoring an aspiring baker, judging the next generation of culinary talent, or speaking about entrepreneurship, both Genevieve and Marie bring heart, artistry, and purpose into every space they enter.