MARIA Gabrielle Melendrez, the owner of the cookie business Cookiephile, coined its brand to mean a lover of the baked sweet or savory goodie.
But over time, her fancy cookies have become both a product made out of love and a profound expression of it.
Melendrez fully recognized the undying support of family and friends that helped her bear the birth pains when she started Cookiephile in August 2019.
It was her first formal business after graduating from college with a degree in business management as she had been selling various baked goods such as cookies, cupcakes, bite-sized pizzas in her high school days.
“This time, I focused on selling desserts like chocolate truffles, cookies, personalized cakes, and cupcakes. As a Business Management student, I began applying what I learned from my course. I wanted to start a business as soon as I graduate,” she recalled.
The inspiration for concentrating on cookies came from the feedback of her trusted friends.
“I presented my business ideas to my trusted friends and I gathered their insights. One of the best insights that I received was: ‘Ngano pa ka mag buhat ug new product na pwede naman ka mag focus sa imong
strength? The best baya imong cookies!” she said.
Since then, she has been experimenting and giving exciting flair to humble cookies by incorporating it with popular flavors.
“We have been known to be a cookie shop that sells Nutella-filled cookies. Nutella is a timeless favorite of many people and we paired it with other cookie dough flavors that are also popular like Chocolate Chip, Red Velvet, Matcha, and Double Chocolate. We also added common flavors like Chocolate Chunk, S'mores, Cheesecakes, and Oreo,” she said.
Learning about running a business in school and actually selling treats on a small scale did not guarantee she is spared from the business’s demanding nature.
Cookiephile first earned positive traction when she joined several bazaars, only armed with a small oven.
“My first ever bazaar happened during a Dance Concert around May 2019. I had my family to help me in preparing but it was still very stressful. Our oven was too small and my marketing materials were just a piece of paper and a pen. Production was inefficient and I barely sold half of my cookies,” Melendrez recounted.
“When I joined my first Kadayawan Bazaar, my cookies we're surprisingly sold out on the first day. On the succeeding days, people would fall in line at our booth and were very eager to try our cookies. The demand for our products remarkably increased so I started to invest in a bigger oven to increase production,” she added.
While it was a good sign that her business is viable, she was unprepared for the looming high demand at Christmas.
“The demand during Christmas was extremely crazy,” she said. “My staff of bakers and sellers and I were overworked. Even my mom ended up working for the business because I couldn't handle everything myself. Managing the production line was incredibly stressful during that time - the quality of the cookies wasn't consistent; inventory was a mess, and the madness goes on. Another problem that I realized was that the unnecessary expenses we're piling up. Managing the production and financial aspects of the business we're very difficult for me that I almost ended up quitting my day job.”
But she was able to rise up and learned more about herself as an entrepreneur, thanks to the support of her family and friends.
“They taught me some techniques on how I can solve the business' problems. It was their guidance and my perseverance that helped me overcome all of those [challenges],” Melendrez said.
“I really lack the skill in managing the important aspects of the business such as production and financials. I learned that it is important to always plan ahead and be ready and that you should always have an open mind for the solutions,” she added.
She is currently selling her cookies online but Cookiephile will become available in FoodPanda in June this year.
“Today, our sales have doubled despite the off-season and the pandemic. I think our production will increase because we will start selling on FoodPanda this June. Madungagan na pud mig 2 ka resellers,” she said, adding that her continuous product innovation also contributed to the success of her business.
Melendrez owed Cookiephile’s resilience from the support of the people around her and it became her inspiration to help others.
“Besides doing business to support my family, I do business because I want to help other people earn by accepting resellers. I also donate 10 percent of our revenues to a local foundation Pakikipagkapwa PH,” she said.
Pakikipagkapwa PH has been one of the groups raising donations to aid Dabawenyos in feeding families and frontliners within the city.
“Although business is about income, I have also learned that business is more about people. There is no business without the customers, the staff, and the support of the public. Business is also more meaningful if you do it for the people. Business is difficult but it is bearable because of the people,” she said.
Melendrez is planning to put up her own physical store and a cafe to feature eco-friendly and artisanal products aside from continuing to do business with her resellers and cultivate more meaningful collaborations with other businesses.
“It is no doubt that the business helped me financially, especially during these trying times. But more than that, it helped me achieve a sense of meaning and purpose. It really warms my heart whenever they tell us that their cravings were satisfied or when the person that received their gift loved it. This business has really spread out love for ourselves and for others through its products,” Melendrez said. RAG