From the outside looking in, 10 Ten Baker appears to be a quaint little cake shop hidden on the upper floor of an old shoplot.
However, beneath the surface of cottage-core aesthetics, aromatic brews, and yummy bakes is a heartfelt and tumultuous journey.
Indeed, Wei Jing and Xiao Fen may be the happy couple who runs 10 Ten Baker today, but they’ve been through a lot before they both arrived at this juncture.
Finding faith
In 2019, Wei Jing lost his late wife, a Malaysian actress, in a car accident. Then in 2020, his mum suddenly passed away as well.
As the world struggled with a global pandemic, Wei Jing was suffering internally, too. The series of tragic events pushed him into a depressive episode.
Meanwhile, Xiao Fen had been working as a banker for about 10 years. However, she felt that this way of life didn’t align with what she truly wanted, and sought to have a higher purpose.
As Wei Jing put it, “We were both lost in our own lives.”
However, the two of them began to find their purpose and direction in God. And through God, they found each other.
To share their love story, the two have penned down their journey from both perspectives online.
“I told God that if He wanted me to enter into love and marriage again, He would have to bring that woman to me, just like He brought Eve to Adam (Genesis 2:22),” Wei Jing wrote in the blog. “I wouldn’t actively pursue relationships, let alone love.”
And that woman turned out to be Xiao Fen, who had been embracing singledom up until meeting Wei Jing.
A ten out of ten pairing
“On 10/10, we will be together.”
This was a journal entry that Xiao Fen had written down on October 7, some years ago. She had been driving when she said she felt the Holy Spirit imparting that message.
And just as she wrote down, that was the day Xiao Fen and Wei Jing got together. Wei Jing said that he had felt the calling on that day, believing that it was the day God defined for him to receive blessings.
“I felt like a Grab delivery had arrived, and it was time to accept it,” he quipped.
Besides being their special day, 10 Ten refers to John 10:10, a bible verse about that inspired the couple to receive a life of abundance.
Beyond finding each other, they also felt called to start their business together. “We decided to turn our love into a testimonial of how great God is through 10 Ten Baker.”
A cheesy venture
But why cheesecake, of all things?
Wei Jing shared that he used to visit Lot 10’s THE TOKYO RESTAURANT every weekend. And when Xiao Fen—who barely knew him at the time—noticed that, she was curious why.
“I told her it’s because I love cheesecake, and she said she could bake it for me if I wanted,” Wei Jing recalled.
And that’s how Wei Jing got to taste his favourite cheesecake. Even with the first bite, he was already pushing Xiao Fen to sell her creations—it was that mindblowing.
They began selling the cheesecakes online, and it eventually became a full-fledged brick-and-mortar cafe. It’s housed in an older building, established in the 1950s. It had belonged to Wei Jing’s grandfather, and was sitting empty for some time before the couple transformed it into what it is today.
Wei Jing sourced every piece of furniture himself, wanting to create a space with a cosy, retro environment.
Through great care and effort, the couple finally launched their cafe on… you guessed it, October 10, 2024.
More than cake
The Klang Valley is home to plenty of cake shops, though, with cheesecake being a pretty accessible bake nowadays. However, Wei Jing is confident that 10 Ten Baker stands out for various reasons.
“It’s not about the cake; it is about us, our stories, and our passion to keep sharing the depth of life,” he said. “And of course our cheesecake is rated the best cheesecake in town by many of our customers and returning customers.”
On Friday night and weekends, they host their own church fellowship. Soon, they plan to expand downstairs where there’s a larger space to accommodate more people.
Currently, the couple are the only two people running 10 Ten Baker, having quit their formal careers to pursue this calling. That said, they do have plans to hire some help.
However, in the bigger picture, they have no intentions to scale further.
To Wei Jing, 10 Ten Baker is more like a “life-driven” business rather than a commercial, money-making business. He believes that when they keep their intentions pure, they are able to define their own lives, not the outside world.
“Soon people will be drawn and attracted to how we operate and live,” he determined.
“Our direction is clear, we want to share the true meaning of life through our experiences. This cafe is a place where you can come by, share your stories, sit down and relax, and ultimately find peace.”
Featured Image Credit: 10 Ten Baker
