We recently connected with Luisa Cerda and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Luisa , thanks for joining us today. 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?

I began this business on a whim and a dream. I’ve had this business since 2010. The first 7 years were hard. I pushed it on social media. Had family & friends help. Kept a float with orders. But it was a huge competitive market. In 2016 I met my husband. As a couple you share your goals & dreams. He was such a hard working man. A fire captain for the Houston Fire Department. My hero. He asked me lots of questions, kept notes. Before long he built my website, had it on Yelp, Yahoo Business, Facebook & Instagram. Business was booming!
I couldn’t take any days off.
The summer of 2019, I received some messages for a client asking for a quote for a huge order for Eva Longoria’s Foundation. I honestly thought it was a joke. It wasn’t! I spoke with an assistant of hers, after sending them some samples of a cookie with her logo. They reached out and let me know I won the bid and an order was placed, check sent. Order was due in November. I was so nervous and excited I simply forgot to ask them for a picture of them posting my work. Thankfully they shared it on Instagram tagging my business. The orders were flying in. But remember this was late 2019. The beginning of 2020 Covid came and struck my business harshly just like it did the world.
My family, my husbands family, friends, HFD lost the man that meant the world to us all. The man who made not only my business but me believe in it as a whole passed from Covid in September of 2020. Going through our grief, learning to live again was the hardest thing I’ve done. I started to get back to the cookies about the same time the world was trying to get back to normal. Not sure it’s even there yet. But our new normal. I began pushing it again on all social media platforms.
Now being a widowed Mom, even though we didn’t have any children together our kids he claimed as his. He did his job as a man and instilled some very great things in the minds of our small children at the time. Watching them grow, knowing I had to keep pushing. I worked hard. I had to get back into the work force and provide. I worked a regular 8-5, worked on orders. It was hard: working on 4 hours sleep. I pushed through.
Gracefully I received an order from a client and at the time I had honestly no idea who it was. She was the sweetest soul explaining to me about the company she worked for. I did a few orders for them. Not thinking just working on them. This year 2023, opening day of the Houston Astros. I attended and first thing I noticed beside our World Series Champs was the huge OXY logo all over the Minute Maid Stadium. On the Astros jerseys. I was, if I couldn’t explain it but ecstatic knowing I’ve been making orders for the biggest sponsor of our Houston Astros! Knowing my small business is getting orders for a client so big! Her latest order was a few weeks ago in June and she had to let me know that this order of 10 dozen cookies were specifically asked to be placed by the CEO of OXY made me the happiest and luckiest girl! A huge thank you to Olive Zanakis & OXY!

Here’s to many many more dreams and goals with my angel right beside me.
Cookie indulgence is growing!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Cookie Indulgence began at a time when this cookie craze was hitting social media everywhere. Having small children it was a given. Knowing it wasn’t in my budget to ever provide this service for my kids events pushed me harder to keep my kids parties in the decoration & sweet market.

The more the years passed the more my designs grew and knowledge expanded. I proud of that, learning new techniques and expanding my understanding of this industry.

From birthdays, weddings, holiday parties and now company logos I create what your imagination has in mind. I keep in close contact with my clients, give ideas to help.
I try very hard to make their dreams a reality.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

Word of mouth and social media. Biggest source of marketing is providing an amazing product and getting honest feedback from clients.

I have made my own recipes and it took me a long time to finally get it right for me. Knowing I got it right with my clients keeps me motivated. Just as much as clients purchase for events I have a few who purchase for their sweet tooth that don’t want to share. I love hearing all the details of how happy or even how it didn’t appeal. Thankfully I haven’t had that experience except once. But it was a learning lesson and I moved on and prevented from happening again.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

This business isn’t a huge impact to your pocket book at first. It’s stuff you own already. Oven check, mixer check, flour, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract, butter check. My biggest expense was cookie butter, baggies for the cookies, boxes. I spent about $500 out of pocket. Gained it back within a few orders.

Years later expense grew. More orders coming in, more supplies needed.

Covid hit and I lost a lot. Had to recoup. I learned about some grants that were available, I applied. I won one and it helped get me started all over again. Gained some huge clients, brought my attention back to hustling and continue going! I’m very humble when it comes to learning lessons and grateful I’ve pulled through.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.CookieIndulgenceHouston.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/cookieindulgence
• Facebook: www.Facebook.com/cookieindulgence01
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/luisa-cerda-29031642
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/cookieindulgen1
• Yelp: https://s.yelp.com/WiPAhVrXrZ