We were lucky to catch up with Doug Taylor recently and have shared our conversation below.

Doug, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Folks often look at a successful business and imagine it was an overnight success, but from what we’ve seen this is often far from the truth. We’d love to hear your scaling up story – walk us through how you grew over time – what were some of the big things you had to do to grow and what was that scaling up journey like?

One of the biggest misconceptions is that success happens overnight. People often ask how we’re doing this, but the truth is, founders focus too much on profit and not enough on reinvestment. They think about how much they can take home rather than how much they can spend to grow the business. It’s crucial to reinvest in advertising and building a team.

There’s no secret to it. People elevate growth to an unattainable level, but it’s really about finding ways to spend more and not being obsessed with taking home the most money. We have staff members who make more than we do, and that’s fine because we’re in it to build. Business is like a sport or a war—you’re either obsessed with winning or someone else will come and take over. I’d rather invest in good people because I’m building for the long term.

The key is ensuring that you and your partner are aligned on your goals and then going all-in. Every business is different, but for us, COVID was a significant challenge. We built systems to handle the impact, and we didn’t lay off any employees. We committed to being there for our customers, even if we only had one a day.

It’s about choosing your business’s direction and pursuing it 100 percent. I often joke that it’s “billions or bankrupt”—either way, we’re getting a B. This means giving it my all. People give up too easily, but with determination, you can negotiate with creditors and find ways to continue. It’s about committing to the process and pushing harder than anyone else.

Doug, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Our journey into the dessert business began with a simple love for chocolate chip cookies. I used to enjoy cookies my friend’s mom baked, but they contained Crisco, which Sara, my then-girlfriend, and now wife, urged me to avoid due to health concerns. We started experimenting with replacing Crisco with butter, aiming to create a dense, gooey chocolate chip cookie. This turned into a fun adventure of baking together, with no initial intention of starting a business.

It took us a year to perfect our recipe. As we were getting married and on a tight budget, we decided to use our cookies as wedding favors, making them huge to stand out. About a year later, we began participating in local events, where someone discovered us and invited us to join a new market. That’s when we decided to take a leap of faith, quit our jobs, and open a market stand.

Starting with a modest investment, we took the risk, thinking we could make it back if things didn’t work out. Surprisingly, people connected with our story. We ran Facebook ads sharing our journey, and it resonated with many. We still have customers who have been with us since day one.

Based in Intercourse, Pennsylvania, Taylor Chip Cookies is 100% owned by us. We make huge, unique, stuffed cookies using only locally sourced real butter. All our jams and fillings are made in-house, and we never use corn syrup or vegetable shortenings. What began as a fun date night activity in 2015 turned into a business after perfecting our recipe over 1.5 years. We started as newlyweds, using 0% APR credit cards to open our first market stand in August 2018. Our cookies, big enough to share, have created some of the best moments of our marriage, and we want everyone to experience the joy of the world’s best cookies.

Taylor Chip is on a mission to provide the world’s most perfect cookie while maintaining our values and keeping our ingredients simple. We are launching a 20,000-square-foot creamery in 2025 and now offer ice cream and coffee at all our locations.

I’m proud that Sara and I are building this together. I’m proud of our team and the culture we’ve created. The impact we’ve had is incredible. For instance, we were invited to a wedding by a couple whose relationship centered around our cookies. I’m excited about what we’re building and our future projections. The community we’ve made, both among employees and customers, is amazing.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Right now is one of those times. We’re pivoting to wholesale and consumer packaged goods (CPG). E-commerce doesn’t work like it used to, so we’ve been building manufacturing lines to adapt. We officially launched this new direction in June and will be close to 200 locations by the end of July. We’re in most DashMart locations, Brothers stores, and Stewart Leonard’s.

This pivot is about building convenience because customers don’t want to wait a week for cookies anymore. They want immediate access and convenience, so that’s been a significant shift for us. Moving to wholesale means we can reach more people faster, ensuring that our cookies are available when and where our customers want them.

How’d you meet your business partner?

I met my wife, Sarah, at a mutual friend’s Halloween party on October 14, 2014. We had no idea then that we would become business partners and much more. What started as a casual meeting turned into a deep connection, both personally and professionally. Over time, our shared passion for baking and spending quality time together evolved into Taylor Chip Cookies. Sarah has been my rock and co-founder, and together, we’ve turned a fun hobby into a thriving business.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://taylorchip.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/taylorchip/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/taylorchipcc
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dougietaylor/
• Twitter: https://x.com/taylorchipcc
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuiyHL6SHzjzFyHXAJx2RMg