Smart Cookies
Bauer Graduate Students Share Sweet Success with Houston Bakery Cookie Cookie
Business is sweet for C. T. Bauer College of Business graduate student Sheldon Joiner who owns and operates Cookie Cookie, a small-scale bakery in Houston.
MBA candidate Joiner is the baker and owner behind the operations while his girlfriend Yu Hsuan (Shani) Lin says watching the business develop has given her a practical lens through which to connect classroom concepts from her MS Marketing studies to real-world entrepreneurship.
When Joiner first started to bake, it was never his intention to turn it into a full-fledged business. Before this personal project launched into a full-fledged business, every batch he made was for one very special customer.
After his mother got sick, she was restricted from eating an overabundance of processed foods, Joiner explained, which meant that her favorite treat — cookies — would have to be cut from her diet.
"I taught myself how to bake using clean ingredients so my mom could enjoy them as well," Joiner said. " As I got better at baking, more people started asking if they could buy them. What began as something for my mom became something others believed in too, and that’s when I knew it could grow into something special."
"What began as something for my mom became something others believed in too, and that’s when I knew it could grow into something special."
As Joiner developed Cookie Cookie, Lin supported him through personal encouragement and occasionally shared some marketing observations with Joiner. Their conversations about the venture allowed Lin to connect concepts from her graduate program with real-world entrepreneurship and gave her a new perspective on building a business.
"When you have a dream, it's hard to find someone who believes in it as much as you do," Joiner said. "Shani has always been special to me. I'm just so thankful to have someone who encourages me, believes in the journey, and wants to see this business succeed."
Lin chose Bauer for her graduate school education to expand her academic point of view, she said. She had practical experience in marketing, but she wanted to study the fundamentals.
Moving to Houston encouraged her to stay open to new opportunities, she said, and being exposed to a community of like-minded people motivated her to pursue her own goals and ambitions.
A big inspiration for Lin was the No. 1 ranked Cyvia and Melvyn Wolff Center for Entrepreneurship, she said. Events like Wolffest, an annual three-day food festival that highlights entrepreneurial spirit, showed her that Bauer offered just the right supportive environment for students interested in building business and pursuing new ideas.
"It feels like I can do anything when I'm at Bauer, and I’m so grateful for all the resources that have helped us pursue our own career ambitions,” Lin said. "The supportive environment has helped Sheldon in developing Cookie Cookie. Watching his journey has been a new experience for me, and it has made me more confident about pursuing my own goals in the future.”
"It feels like I can do anything when I'm at Bauer, and I’m so grateful for all the resources that have helped us pursue our own career ambitions."
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