We recently connected with Kaitlyn Depoister and have shared our conversation below.

Kaitlyn , appreciate you joining us today. Looking back, what’s an important lesson you learned at a prior job?

I’m a believer in the idea that life happens in seasons, and certain seasons are meant to teach us certain lessons. Whether that season involves a relationship, a job, a new direction–there will be something you can take away and carry with you into the next season. Nothing you go through–good or bad–will be wasted. My background is in publishing; my college degree is in English and I’ve worked as an editor for several years. At one particular company, I was in an editorial role but the job was more encompassing than that. Often I would be pulled in different directions and asked to perform duties that were outside my scope of experience. I was overwhelmed but tried to adapt and go with the flow as best I could. One of my main issues with my supervisor was the lack of communication and proper expectations. Ultimately, I didn’t remain in that position and left with hurt feelings, self-doubt and a lot of confusion.
How does this apply to my cookie business? I try very hard to set proper expectations with my customers! I LOVE when people send inspiration pictures, color palettes and even invitations to match. This gives me a direction to go in and based on their expectations, I can say if that might be beyond my skill set or yes I can absolutely make that happen! This goes hand-in-hand with good communication. I would rather over-communicate with my clients than not speak enough and miss the mark/not meet their expectations. For this reason, I do 99% of my business through email or messages–that way it’s in writing! I don’t generally do phone calls with customers because things can be misheard/misunderstood, or you can think you mentioned something but actually never did. If everything is in writing, both sides can be on the same page and everything is clear.
Even the rough patches in life have important lessons to teach us, if we look hard enough and are willing to grow.

Kaitlyn , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m Kaitlyn, cookie artist extraordinaire! I’m a self-taught cookier, with a background in editing and writing. As a kid, I was always in the kitchen and I love experimenting with things I’ve never made before! Baking has always been a passion of mine, so the idea of making money while doing something I loved was perfect. Not to say that it’s been easy, but it’s definitely rewarding.

Peace, Joy & Gluten is a custom-decorated sugar cookie business, which means I make cookies for any special occasion in your life.

All my cookies are hand-decorated–no machines here! Every cookie that comes out of my kitchen has been mixed, rolled, cut, baked, decorated, and packaged by me.

Nothing I make is gluten-free–yes, I get that question a lot. Back when I was naming my business, I was attempting to be super clear that I don’t make any allergen-friendly products, but I think the name has had the opposite effect, ha! It’s nothing personal. Gluten-free products require separate equipment, which means separate cutters, mixers, cookie sheets, etc. That is not an avenue that I’m pursuing, but I’m happy to recommend other bakers who can meet allergy needs.

I work from my home, so I don’t have a storefront shop. As such, I don’t keep any products on hand. Everything is made to order and must be ordered in advance. I love having a home bakery because it means I get to choose my hours and I can spend time with my husband and baby daughter.

One of the coolest experiences of my cookie journey thus far was making cookies for an event that Trace Adkins was headlining! Most of my orders aren’t that flashy, but for that special moment or event in your life, I get to play a small role and it’s such an honor.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

Social media is an impossible animal to tame; just when you think you’ve got it figured out, the algorithms change and you have to start all over again! For me, that game has been exhausting and doesn’t work for me. While it’s cool to gain followers on my socials, I’m not interested in having the highest count or hitting a certain threshold. I want to interact with my people in an authentic, genuine way.

To that end, my advice for a newbie would be to be yourself! If Reels aren’t your vibe, don’t bother with them. If going Live doesn’t serve you or your customers, stop forcing it. Your customers will absolutely notice when you’re being fake and just “doing it for the ‘gram.” Also, be transparent. There’s enough of impossible standards being posted about online; don’t feed that lie and cycle. Just be real. More than likely, your clients and potential clients have lived enough life to know that perfect doens’t exist, so if you’re projecting perfection, they won’t connect with you. It won’t resonate. Not to say that your socials should drag everyone down if you’re having a bad day, but just to have balance. The social media accounts that I most connect with are people who share their real feelings, their real wins and their real struggles. Which accounts resonate with you and why do they? Whatever is speaking to you through their accounts, try to emulate on your own.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

Absolutely, a great one is Start with Why by Simon Sinek. If you haven’t read it, check it out! Also, How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. An oldie but a goodie.

Contact Info:

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