For Mobile Baker, Success Is a Lot to Chew On

	Meet Your Baker: Kim Ima

Welcome to the Small-Business Soap series, in which we follow a start-up in real time. Getting a small business off the ground can have as many twists and turns as a daytime drama. But unlike television plots, these stories can inspire and educate entrepreneurs -- be sure to tune in every Wednesday to find out how.

Kim Ima's Treats Truck has seen it all since it opened for business earlier this summer.

In about two months, her sugary treats went from her bakery to her truck to Wall St. offices, including TheStreet.com's own conference rooms.

Ima couldn't have predicted the licensing jungle, crazy work hours or, conversely, all the excitement her little truck has generated, but she did know that her start-up experience wouldn't come with directions.

Ima shared her thoughts about building a business over her cell phone, putting me on hold a few times to sell some treats.

Generally, she says, her small business has met and exceeded her initial expectations, but "when you actually get what you want, it takes a lot of energy and focus to deal with it."

Of course there are positives like doting press attention and swooning customers, but, let's face it, a start-up is challenging.

"It's like when you have a child," says Ima. "There's no going back, like with a job or hobby."

The business is a constant learning process for Ima, who was surprised by how quickly things accelerated.

"The transitions that a business goes through when it grows came right away," she says, and it has forced her to look at other parts of her business besides the truck earlier than expected.

Ima is already jumping into licensing her brands to other companies, wholesale and packaging options, for example.

"Even in a few months ... I'm already thinking more about how to make [the business] more profitable and very solid," she says. "I'm not just dealing with theoretical money [now]."

Life Beyond the Truck

So the question remains: Does Ima still have a personal life?

Right now, a severely limited one, she says.

She missed her father's birthday party in California, no longer goes to her weekly yoga classes and feels strange actually sitting down to eat a meal.

"Right now, life's not quite in balance," she says.

Her friends and family are supportive and cheer her on, but the whole experiences is teaching her to step back and reevaluate what is important to her, including much needed free time.

"I have to think very carefully about how to use my energy," she says. "The more I can structure my business so it can work on its own, the more I can step away from it."

"I miss things about my old life like the freedom to see people and get enough sleep," says Ima, but while it may sound like a cliche, she says that seeing happy customers really does make it all worthwhile.