It was about a year ago when Cheryl McCarthy and Carolyn Todd approached Zoe and Brennen Lukas of Whipped Bakeshop with a sweet deal of their own. They had just purchased a high profile Fishtown building with a commercial space, and they could think of nothing more charming to occupy the storefront then a bakery.

Having approached every new endeavor - whether it's a Jack Daniel's bottle-shaped cake or a new retail location - with interest and creativity, the two decided to give it a go.

Prior to working at their new location at the corner of Berks and Belgrade streets, which opened last week, Whipped Bakeshop operated out of the home kitchen of pastry artist Zoe Lukas. Lukas started the business in 2007 after working for a few years as a cake decorator and baker in some of Philadelphia's finest bakeries.

It was Lukas' balance of baking scrumptious pastries and using her art degree in painting from the Maryland Institute College of Art to make them visually stunning that earned Whipped Bakeshop recognition from local and national foodie publications, including a 2008 cover for the Philadelphia City Paper Choice Awards edition.

But without an actual storefront, Whipped Bakeshop lacked the traditional elements of many bakeries, such as the street-level visibility and the client-baker relationship they desired. They were also reaching a plateau where they would be unable to expand much more without the space of a commercial-sized kitchen.

Although the Lukas' home kitchen in Roxborough is a pretty good size, looking around at what has become of their new Fishtown storefront, Zoe's husband, Brennen Lukas - who handles the marketing, as well as "dishes, deliveries and mopping the floor " - had to admit, "This is much better."

The storefront's large windows and corner location assures Whipped Bakeshop has a serious presence on Berks Street. The store provides the couple with the space and atmosphere to work creatively and invite clients to taste various samplings.

Made to match and complement the store's daily offerings of artistically designed cupcakes and cookies, the sleek interior design is outfitted with a syrupy-sweet array of colors and quirks. Designed by Warren Muller and RJ Thornburg, of the Kensington design group bahdeebahdu, the interior features brightly striped walls that bounce off the stainless steel appliances and surfaces.

The centerpiece and absolute essence of the room - besides the cake display, of course - is the chandelier-style light fixture sculpture by Muller. The light sculpture consists of a variety of candy-colored eccentric and found objects, such as lamp bases, a fan and even a cane.

Now equipped with a beautiful space to work and bake, Zoe Lukas is looking forward to some of the new opportunities that will arise from having foot traffic.

"Before, everything was custom order," said Lukas "but now, there are walk-ins and we are beginning to gauge what people want to walk in and buy."

Since they just opened, they're keeping it simple with cupcakes, such as the popular lemon zest and red velvet, and La Colombe coffee. However, Lukas imagines that they eventually will expand their baked goods selection to homemade cookies, brownies and other goodies that are the result of what she describes as "old-fashioned baking and really good ingredients."

Since the bakeshop's opening last week, Lukas said there has been an outpouring of encouragement from Fishtown locals. Nearby residents are anxious to get their own taste of what's going on. However, despite the variety of cake and icing pairings available at Whipped Bakeshop, they do not carry pound cake or butter cake.

"Everyone really likes their Stock's Bakery," said Brennen Lukas about the requests they've received for butter cake since opening the Fishtown store, "but we're a little different. Of course, we hope we can become a tradition eventually, like Stock's is, but we're not here to compete."

For now, the goal is a bit simpler. As Zoe Lukas said: "We hope to grow, and keep making cake."