Angelita Wijaya

Angelita Wijaya studied Commerce at Macquarie University in Sydney and at first intended to pursue a career in the corporate sector. However, she soon decided to follow her passion for baking and went on to study at Le Cordon Bleu in Sydney as a patisserie chef.

Angelita Wijaya is a pastry chef based in Bali, Indonesia. Ms Wijaya studied Commerce at Macquarie University in Sydney and at first intended to pursue a career in the corporate sector. However, she soon decided to follow her passion for baking and went on to study at Le Cordon Bleu in Sydney as a patisserie chef.

‘The first time I went to Australia I never thought I’d open up a [patisserie] shop because I took commerce and I was thinking I’d take up corporate work,’ Ms Wijaya said. 

‘But things changed a lot after I stayed there for some time, and I thought - why don’t I  just open up a patisserie shop that sells good food, with good service, with good quality cake - in Bali, in my country?  That makes people happy - when you serve good quality food.’

Ms Wijaya, who has now expanded her business to provide wholesale pastries and cakes to local businesses in Bali and Surabaya, and also runs a catering service for various events, credits her Australian education with helping her get her business started. 

‘My teachers at school were very helpful to me when I was setting up my business. They helped me a lot to substitute ingredients and helped me decide what I should do and what I shouldn’t do. I didn’t have any background in the hospitality business before, so they were very helpful and supported me a lot.’

‘The most rewarding part is when someone tries your creation and then they like it, they are happy and then they smile,’ Ms Wijaya said. 

She hopes her business can be a model for others to help the local economy grow. 

‘I hope my business can inspire other people, especially locals, to open up their own businesses and to believe in themselves. We want to share the knowledge we have with other people and spread our passion for food everywhere. And I want to empower women, for them to know that they can do it too.’