Cupcake Heaven in Fairfax closing in May

The owner of Cupcake Heaven announced Thursday he is closing his 10-year-old business in the Fairfax Shopping Center.

Drew Hurst said a new business will begin preparations to occupy the Concord Pike space on June 1. He did not name the business.

Cupcake Heaven opened a decade ago as a specialty cupcake bakery. At that time, the individual, frosted confections were at the height of their popularity. 

A U.S. fixation on gourmet cupcakes began about 2000. The culinary trend is widely credited to New York City's Magnolia Bakery, which was featured in an episode of the former HBO series "Sex and the City."

Sarah Jessica Parker's Carrie Bradshaw and actress Cynthia Nixon who portrayed Miranda Hobbs were shown eating vanilla cupcakes with pink buttercream frosting outside of the bakery.

The craze continued until about 2014. But, by then, an overly saturated market and rapid expansion caused many cupcake businesses to crumble.  

One of the most well-known, Crumbs, a high-end bakery chain that once had a cupcake business in the Christiana Mall, closed all of its stores in December 2016. 

Another popular Delaware cupcake business, SAS Cupcakes in Newark, called it quits in 2015 after eight years in operation.

Hurst credited the success of Cupcake Heaven to "an incredible staff, family support, and wonderful customers."

In a statement, he wrote, "Over the years, I have met some of the greatest people and have been fortunate to share in the joy of celebrating weddings, birthdays, company events, and special occasions with many families and businesses."

Hurst said limited hours begin May 4. 

Cupcake Heaven will be open from 7 a.m. to noon Monday through Friday and will sell coffee, beverages and select baked goods.

It will continue through the month "or while our supplies last," he said.

Hurst said he is continuing his other business, Beacon Safety, also in the Fairfax Shopping Center. It offers safety seminars including First Aid and CPR, as well as Workplace Violence and Active Shooter training.

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Contact Patricia Talorico at (302) 324-2861 or ptalorico@delawareonline.com and on Twitter @pattytalorico