Decadent, delicious and gourmet – The Cookie Collab creates mouth-watering ‘cookies with attitude’ with only the best ingredients. We chat with founders Chris and Clarissa about their unique business and sweet creations.
TELL US WHAT THE COOKIE COLLAB IS ALL ABOUT
The Cookie Collab is a cookie company nestled in the heart of Ballito that specialises in giant gourmet cookies. We offer a wide range of flavours and fillings to create the ultimate cookie experience for our customers.
WHAT WAS THE INSPIRATION BEHIND STARTING THE COOKIE COLLAB?
Having both spent some time overseas and being lovers of all things sweet, we were inspired by the traditional New York cookie that is so loved by the locals in America. We stumbled across a company that made over-the-top, gourmet, stuffed cookies and decided we needed to bring that same deliciousness to South Africa. Hence, The Cookie Collab was born!
TELL US A BIT MORE ABOUT THE TEAM BEHIND YOUR INCREDIBLY DELICIOUS COOKIES
The Cookie Collab was founded by a husband and wife team with very different career backgrounds and an entrepreneurial spirit. As a small business, we handle everything from product development to production and logistics between the two of us. Chris is responsible for day-to-day operations and sales, while Clarissa is focused more on marketing and finance.
WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGE AND YOUR BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT?
Not eating all the cookies! On a serious note, our biggest challenge has been learning how to manage a work-life balance. Time management has been of the utmost importance for us because, apart from the cookie business, we also run another business, and one of us actually has a full-time job.
As far as our biggest achievement goes, I think the business in itself is a huge achievement for us. We started it during COVID when many other businesses around us were struggling to stay afloat. On top of that, neither of us had ever even baked a cookie before we decided to start this venture! We’ve had to learn every aspect of what we do along the way, and we’re proud of how far we’ve come.
WHICH FLAVOUR COOKIE IS THE FIRST YOU EVER CREATED, AND WHICH FLAVOUR IS THE MOST POPULAR TODAY?
The OG cookie is our Pecan Nutella cookie, which is still a popular choice among our customers today. We based this off the traditional choc chip cookie and added a Nutella twist. This cookie is the perfect combination of crispy and chewy, loaded with a creamy, sweet Nutella centre. Currently, our most popular cookie is definitely our Salted Caramel Brownie cookie, which is a decadent chocolate cookie, filled with chocolate chunks, with a gooey brownie centre drizzled with salted caramel.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE OTHER ENTREPRENEURS LOOKING TO START A BUSINESS, ESPECIALLY IN THE FOODIE INDUSTRY?
Just give it a go! You never really know what you’re capable of until you try, so if there’s something in your heart that you’d love to do, go for it! Before starting The Cookie Collab, we would never have imagined that we would end up where we are now. You don’t need to have all the answers upfront, but with enough hard work and dedication, you’ll figure it all out.
WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE COOKIE COLLAB?
2024 is going to be a big year for us. We’re working on expanding our current offering, as well as growing our team. We also have something super exciting in the pipeline which we can’t share just yet, but be sure to keep an eye on our social media for the big announcement!
