We recently connected with Christine Meyer and have shared our conversation below.
Christine, thank you so much for joining us today. Let’s jump right into something we’re really interested in hearing about from you – being the only one in the room. So many of us find ourselves as the only woman in the room, the only immigrant or the only artist in the room, etc. Can you talk to us about how you have learned to be effective and successful in situations where you are the only one in the room like you?
As a small business entrepreneur, almost all of the work is up to me. In a lot of cases, being a people pleaser can be a detriment, but not in my cookie business. Making people happy as well as satisfied with their order is always on the top of my mind. When that desire to find a shortcut or take a break creeps in, it’s overpowered by the desire to satisfy. There have been days where I have scraped the icing off of an entire set of cookies and started over. That said I am also careful to bear in mind that no cookie is ever going to turn out perfect. I do my best without being. over the top in decorating, regularly reminding myself it’s a cookie!
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
Cookieburg is a custom cookie company that I launched in 2021. I am the baker, decorator, and run all the business behind the scenes. Customers are able to place custom orders for things like baby showers and birthday parties as well as get seasonally appropriate cookies for Back to School, Christmas, and more.
Customers come to me via my website or social media and share what they are looking for on a custom design. Sometimes they have very specific ideas in mind, others they just give me a general idea and tell me to do my thing! My favorite custom orders to do are usually themes that are new to me! I love the excitement of playing creatively with something new! It also keeps things from being boring!
Seasonal cookies are a different approach as I am mass producing similar items. Usually I look at what sold well the previous year and try to create a design that is similar in idea but has a different look. For Back to School I do a grade level cookie as well as offer one with the child’s name on it. Most parents have a preference for one but I sell a lot of both types! My customers also really enjoy small cookies packaged in a fun way. For Halloween I offer a Boo Bag or Boo Bucket – filled with tiny ghost cookies (about 1.5 inches in height) and at Christmas I filled snow globes with mini snowflake cookies. With seasonal sales, it’s always fun to see what is most popular! I almost always have one item that completely flops too! I am never able to predict what it will be and is a good reminder that each choice is a business risk!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The first quality that I think has been important in running my small business is to always be learning. I listen to a lot of podcasts on marketing, small town business, etc. I also am always studying social media to look at trends and learn more. My entire knowledge base on running a cookie business has come from studying online.
The knowledge and understanding that not everyone is meant to be my customer, is another really important thing. I am too expensive for some, I don’t do copyrighted items which turns away some, my style isn’t appealing to some, the value in my skills isn’t seen by some; all of these things are okay. If I wasn’t okay with it, I would spend a lot of time chasing customers that are meant for someone else or a big box store!
Finally I think the quality of finishing a job and not procrastinating has been an asset! I am a short term project person – I want to start and finish a job within a quick time frame and I don’t like to leave it sitting to do later. While this wouldn’t be a strength in many careers – it suits me well in running a bakery!
What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?
The number one obstacle I face right now is finding the time to train new employees. This is a very specific skill and I have set customer expectations high. While mixing dough and icing isn’t terribly difficult for others, actually decorating cookies is! It’s not a skill that is acquired overnight. But it’s also the most time consuming part of my job. I can expand my business if I can get others trained to help with this. One way I am hoping to work on this is by allowing potential employees come to my cookie decorating classes, free of charge, to gain practice. I also am trying to use them in bigger, more simple orders that don’t require as much practice to successfully do a cookie!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.mycustombakes.com/cookieburg
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cookieburg1
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cookieburg
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