We were lucky to catch up with Caroline Bowen recently and have shared our conversation below.

Caroline, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

The mission of Sweet Kaki’s is to bring people together. One of the best ways to bring people together is with food. I love knowing that my pies are helping to bring family and friends together.

On May 26, 2019, I had a heart attack. I came so close to death, the odds not in my favor, yet I survived. It was a beautiful day on the lake where our family was on vacation. We were boating, tubing, swimming, and enjoying a picnic lunch at the boat dock. We were having a wonderful day. After lunch, I felt an odd feeling in my throat and chest. Nothing too crazy, kind of like my food was stuck in my chest. No big deal, right? So, we kept on going, and enjoying the sunshine.

As the day continued, the funny feeling never went away. When we returned to the house, I took some over the counter medication, hoping to get rid of the odd indigestion, but it didn’t help. Suddenly, around 6:00pm, I was paralyzed with the most horrific pain that I have ever had in my life. It felt like someone was trying to push their foot straight through my chest. My body started sweating, my hair was soaking wet, and my hands were numb. All of these symptoms came on suddenly, and there was no relief from the pain. At that moment, I felt everything moving in slow motion. I thought I was going to collapse and die at that very moment. The pain was unbearable.

My son, who was 15 years old, stepped right in, just like a grown man and started caring for me. He remained cool and collected and his actions helped me remain calm. He and my mother-in-law call 911. However, the terror I witnessed on my 9-year-old daughter’s face made the situation very difficult for me.

After the ambulance arrived, everything started to move quickly. I was so lucky to have such wonderful medical professionals in my path that night. I was rushed to a local hospital where the Emergency Room doctor immediately made the call to life-flight me to the nearest cardiovascular unit located in Gainesville, GA. He knew exactly what medical services I needed, he knew I needed it fast, and he made it happen. He saved my life with that call – I will forever be grateful to him.

The 19-minute helicopter ride to Gainesville was simply surreal. All I could think about were my three children; my two earthly children, and my one heavenly angel, who died as a baby boy. Children need their Mama, and I certainly needed them. However, I knew I was dying. Grey clouds began to form in my head as I began to search for a special baby boy in heaven. (I have tears writing this part because I can feel every bit of this as I write this story.) I remember calling out his name and searching for him, but I never found him. I remember the medic in the helicopter asking me who I was calling.

After landing at the hospital in Gainesville, medical professionals surrounded me. I was still searching and calling for my baby boy, and I remember the nurse, at my left, asking me who was I searching for. As I told her the story, she asked me if I saw him, and with tears in my eyes, I told her no. She asked if I had any children on earth, and as I answered her, she encouraged me to focus on them. I remember smiling as I told her about my son and daughter. The next thing I remember was being in a recovery room. They had saved me, I was alive! I survived a blood clot and a myocardial infarction of the left coronary artery. It was not my time to go. I have a purpose to fulfill on earth. God is not ready for me yet!

You may be asking why I am sharing this story. Sharing such an emotional story on this type of platform is not something I would normally do. It’s painful, deep, and so emotional for me, yet it makes me happy and thankful at the same time. I’m sharing this story for several reasons.

First, to remind all of you out there that heart disease is the number one killer of women. The only symptom I had prior to the heart attack was being tired. What working/non-working mama isn’t tired, especially at the end of a school year? Please get your yearly checkups and watch for any of the danger signs!

Second, don’t have regrets. The ones that you say to yourself, “I wish I had done that.” I had a really hard time recovering from the heart attack. I just could not gain my strength back. I would have to take breaks while blow drying my hair. Folding the laundry was insanely difficult. I would even have to take a break when walking from my bedroom to the kitchen. It was frustrating, and as I would rest, I would think about the things that I wished I had done prior to my heart attack. One of those things was baking and selling my apple pies. I love to cook and bake. It brings me such joy. Food brings family and friends together at the table. Being a part of that is special to me. Having a pie business is something I had always wanted to do. During the process of healing, I could not imagine taking on another job. However, I promised myself that if I ever regained my strength and energy back, I would go for it!

Third, enjoy life. Wear your pretty pajamas and spray the heck out of your expensive perfume! I love PJ’s and I love a nice perfume. I have two types of PJ’s; one type that you can only wear in front of your family, and a pretty, fancy type that you wear when you travel. I know you may think that’s crazy, but that’s just my PJ issue. Now for perfume…for 26 years I have worn the same perfume. I love it! My husband and I found it on our honeymoon in London. I fell in love with it. Of course, it is a little expensive, so I have always been careful with how much I use. Not anymore! Now when I go to bed at night, I have on my fancy PJ’s and I give myself a “healthy” spray of my fancy perfume. I go to bed happy and smelling lovely!

I’m so blessed. I thank God daily for allowing me more time in this world. I’m thankful for life. I’m thankful for family and friends. I’m thankful for my strength and energy. I’m thankful that you love my Sweet Kaki’s apple pie and the little business I have started. I am thankful you have enjoyed my apple pie with your loved ones. I am thankful for your support. I simply can’t wait to share many celebrations and holidays with you.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My business is named “Sweet Kaki’s, LLC”, and I started it in 2020. I am mostly known for my delicious homemade apple pies. However, I also make nine other seasonal pies including: Blueberry, Peach, Cherry, Chocolate Chess, Lemon Chess, Coconut Custard, Pecan, Festive Fruit, and Pumpkin.

What sets my pies apart from the rest is they are all handmade, with a lot of love. I use an old family recipe, and I simply love making each one. Each pie is truly homemade with basic, real ingredients like butter, sugar and flour. As far as taste, just ask my customers. They’ll tell you Sweet Kaki’s is the best pie they’ve ever eaten! Compliments like this make me very happy.

I started out by obtaining a “cottage license”, which allowed me to make pies in my home kitchen. Believe it or not, I was literally selling pies off of my front porch. As word spread and business grew, my driveway was lined with carloads of people who drove from all over to purchase 2, 3, and 4 pies at a time. Soon, I started getting calls from retail businesses wanting to sell my pies in their stores.

Since the cottage license only permitted sales to individuals, I had to obtain a “commercial license”, so I could sell to businesses. I also had to find a commercial kitchen. Luckily, I found a spot in the first and only “shared kitchen” in Newnan. This enabled me to get the proper licensing through the Department of Agriculture. Once all the paperwork was approved, I was soon delivering pies to local retailers. This was a huge step for Sweet Kaki’s. It was such an amazing feeling having businesses calling me about my pies!

After about a year in the shared kitchen it became obvious that I had outgrown it, and I needed my own commercial kitchen. Unable to find a suitable location to lease or purchase, my husband and I decided to convert a storage building on our property into my very own commercial kitchen! It took a lot of planning, financing, hard work, long hours, county and state inspections, but it finally came to fruition. In the summer of 2022, Sweet Kaki’s new kitchen was ready and open for business!

The past several years have been both humbling and exciting at the same time. I’ve learned that it takes a lot of hard work to make my business a success. My dream is now a reality. It is an incredible honor knowing that my pies are on so many tables! It’s extremely humbling. The best part is that I get to work with so many neat retailers. I have such wonderful businesses that I work with. Each one of my customers are unique and their shops are special. I feel honored to have my pies in their freezers!

Some of the best memories are the ones made while sitting around the table with family and friends. The greatest joy I get from making my pies is knowing how happy it makes the people who buy them. When I am cooking, I imagine families and friends sitting around a table, laughing and sharing special times together. Good food, and eating it together, is at the heart of relationships. It gives me great satisfaction to know I am doing something that is bringing joy and happiness to others.

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

I keep in touch with my retailers on a regular basis via email, text, Facebook, Instagram, and phone. However, the best way I’ve found to keep in touch and to foster brand loyalty is by making in person visits and setting up what I call “pie tastings”. For these events, I prepare samples, set up a table in the store, and hand out Sweet Kaki promotional items. It is the best feeling in the world to give someone a sample and watch them walk over to the freezer and put one of my pies in their shopping cart.

While at the store, I also make it a point to meet with the owner(s) as well as with the staff members. Building a strong relationship with my retailers and their staff is very important to me because they need to know everything about my pies so that they will be able to answer their customer’s questions.

I encourage you to visit my website, and take a look at some of my retailers, which includes 50 retailers in 6 states. Not only will you want to bring home a Sweet Kaki’s pie, but you’ll also want to bring home some of their other goodies. You’ll note, my retailers range from small, independent shops to several larger grocery stores.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

Believe it or not, the best source of new clients seems to be word of mouth. Retailers who actively market my pies are also a big part of my success. When I first started selling pies out of my home, my sales were mostly to friends and acquaintances, but as news of my pies spread, I had total strangers calling me about my pies. One thing led to another, and I started getting calls from retailers wanting to sell my pies and several restaurants who wanted to put them on their menus. Having a quality product that exceeds expectations certainly helps my business. In addition, retailers who advertise and proactively sell my pies is the best combination. As you know, it’s not easy for a small business that is relatively new and unknown to grow unless they have some help from the retailer. Ultimately, it’s a win-win for both the wholesaler and the retailer.      

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sweetkakis.com
• Instagram: @sweetkakis
• Facebook: @sweetkakis

Image Credits
Dukeandcomedia, Amanda Duke, web designer and photography