Three highly-skilled, creative supermarket cake decorators will vie for top honors as they demonstrate their decorating skills and creative talents in IDDBA's 18th Annual Cake Decorating Challenge.

The three-day contest (they're not judged on endurance, but that's certainly a factor) begins with creating enough production cakes to fill one multi-tiered, eight-foot bakery case on Day One. Day Two is devoted to the creation of a wedding cake. Day Three is a special "Decorator's Choice" theme event.

Contestants receive an all-expense paid trip to Orlando, gifts, trophies, bragging rights, and publicity.

Of 68 entrants from 31 supermarket chains, the decorators receiving an all-expense paid trip to compete are:

Kelli Coleman, Dillons, Lawrence, KS. Kelli has been decorating cakes for 8 years and has been with Dillons for 4½ years. Although she has taken some Wilton Cake Decorating classes, Kelli is largely self-taught. This talented decorator is also the district trainer for her company's pastry cases and enjoys participating in events such as bridal shows and the Taste of Lawrence (a local food event).

Dawnette Costa, Giant Eagle, Erie, PA. A cake decorating veteran, Dawnette has over 30 years of experience. She has been with Giant Eagle for the past 11½ years and likes every aspect of her job. She loves to learn new techniques and is currently helping to develop a dessert program for her company. But, most of all, she enjoys the delight of the customers when they pick up their order.

Rebecca Lougheed, Food City, Greeneville, TN. Rebecca has been able to turn her hobby into a career she loves! She started decorating cakes in 2006 and joined the Food City team the following year. Over the years, with the support of her bakery managers, she has become a skilled decorator. In 2011, she won her company's first annual cake challenge.

The judges for the event will be: Luke Bender, Manager of Technical Service, Maplehurst Bakeries, LLC, and Jim Caliendo, Dessert Training Specialist, Rich Products Corporation.

Dairy-Deli-Bake 2013

June 2-4, 2013

Orange County
Convention Center
Orlando, Florida

Key Dates and Locations

June 1-3, 2014, Denver, CO

June 7-9, 2015, Atlanta, GA

June 5-7, 2016, Houston, TX