His Bakery in Portland, Ore., and Dean Aldinger, the bakery’s customer, were named the annual grand prize winners in the “Make a Cake Face” Sweepstakes from Pillsbury Bakers’ Plus. Each received a $2,500 cash prize.

To qualify for the grand prize, consumers were asked to share a photo from a special “cake face” moment and name their favorite neighborhood bakery through the Make a Cake Face Facebook page. Both the consumer and bakery named were eligible to win the annual grand prize, while this year participants also had the chance to win one of 11 monthly prizes of $250 for bakeries and $100 for customers.

His Bakery, located in Southeast Portland, is a family-owned bakery specializing in cakes, pies, cookies and other baked goods made with only the highest-quality ingredients that keep customers coming back for more. According to owner Jack Robeson, His Bakery’s commitment to superior ingredients is why he chooses Pillsbury Bakers’ Plus, and also why the bakery participated in the Make A Cake Face sweepstakes this year.

“We’re committed to giving our customers the best and nothing else compares to the moisture content, flavor and consistent results that Pillsbury delivers,” Robeson said. “Since we were already supporters of Pillsbury, when we learned about the Make a Cake Face sweepstakes, we decided to give it a try. We’re thrilled to be selected as this year’s winner along with one of our regular customers!”

The winning photo shows customer Aldinger blowing out the candles, with the help of his family, on a “Cloud 9” mousse-filled, chocolate birthday cake from His Bakery. Robeson said he knew Aldinger’s wife was interested in photography, which is why he encouraged the family to submit a photo to Make a Cake Face. According to Robeson, the Aldingers are regular patrons of His Bakery for their special occasion cakes.

The annual Make a Cake Face sweepstakes opened Sept. 1, 2011 and ended Aug. 31, 2012. This year, monthly $250 prizes were awarded to the following bakeries:

July 2012 – Stan’s Northfield Bakery, Northfield, Ohio

June 2012 – Craig’s Cake Shop, Verona, Wis.

May 2012 – The Sugar Shack Bakery, Sioux City, Iowa

April 2012 – Teresa’s Bakery Café, Laurel, Miss.

March 2012 – Ady Cakes LLC, West Reading, Penn.

February 2012 – Grandma’s Bakery, White Bear Lake, Minn.

January 2012 – Stan’s Northfield Bakery, Northfield, Ohio

December 2011 – Yumi’s Bakery, Grinnel, Iowa

November 2011 – Great Bakes Cakes, Port Huron, Mich.

October 2011 – Silver Spoon Bakery, Portsmouth, Va.

September 2011 – The Cake Box Bakery, New Hope, Minn.

On Sept. 1, Make a Cake Face kicked off its promotion and sweepstakes for the third year.  Once again, bakeries and customers have a chance to win $2,500 grand prizes or one of 11 monthly prizes of $250 for bakeries and $100 for customers. 

In order to win, the bakery must be named by a consumer who uploads a “cake face” photo to www.facebook.com/makeacakeface. The sweepstakes ends August 31, 2013. Official rules are available online at www.facebook.com/makeacakeface.

Along with their photos, consumers are asked to share what they love most about their neighborhood bakeries when they enter the sweepstakes. Comments are posted to the Make a Cake Face Facebook page timeline for others to see.

Make a Cake Face was created to help independent retail bakeries increase sales, customer engagement, and loyalty through Facebook and point-of-sale merchandising tools.

“Social media tools like Facebook have proven to be an effective way for independent, neighborhood bakeries to stay connected with their loyal customers,” said Smeeta Gale, associate channel marketing manager, General Mills Bakeries & Foodservice. “We’re excited to kick off our third annual Make a Cake Face sweepstakes to help those bakeries celebrate life’s unforgettable ‘cake face’ moments with their customers.”

Bakeries interested in promoting Make a Cake Face can visit www.facebook.com/makeacakeface and sign up to receive a promotional kit. Each kit provides Make a Cake Face merchandising tools, including a counter card, window cling and stickers for cake boxes.  All point-of-sale materials feature the Make a Cake Face logo and encourage consumers to upload their “cake face” photo to Facebook.

For more information about the Make a Cake Face promotion, independent retail bakeries should contact their General Mills Bakeries & Foodservice sales representative or visit www.facebook.com/makeacakeface.