Cupcakes are definitely the boom baked good of the past couple years. It has become a $200+ million industry, is considered the fastest-growing segment of baked-goods from 2008 - 2013, and continues to be an unwavering topic in the blogosphere. Who knew that a cake designed to serve one person would become such a phenomenon?

Here's a look at how big the cupcake industry has become, and some of the novel ideas and businesses that flourished from this cute baked good:

[Thx Chef2Chef]