How This Cookie Company Went from Farmers Market to 10,000% Growth Overnight | Maya Madsen of Maya's Cookies
What happens when a home baker goes viral - and suddenly has 10,000 orders she has no idea how to fulfill?
In this episode, we sit down with Maya Madsen, Founder & CEO of Maya's Cookies, a vegan bakery and nationwide cookie shipping company built from scratch in her San Diego kitchen.
Maya shares the real, unfiltered story of launching a food business with no culinary school background, no investors, and no roadmap - just a great product, a farmers market booth, and an unshakeable work ethic.
Whether you're launching a CPG brand, selling at farmers markets, starting a home bakery, or scaling a food startup, this episode is packed with hard-won lessons from someone who has lived it.
In this episode, we cover:
How to validate your food product at a farmers market before investing big
Scaling a food business from a home kitchen to a commercial kitchen to a retail storefront
Managing a viral moment - overnight e-commerce growth, supply chain chaos, and staff shortages
Building a loyal customer base as the face of your brand
Vegan and plant-based food business trends and what's actually working in 2024
Why subscriptions aren't the holy grail they used to be for food brands
The truth about getting into retail stores as an independent food brand
How to protect yourself from predatory e-commerce platform contracts
Pricing your food product correctly and tracking real costs, not just top-line revenue
Mission-driven branding and why it matters for food entrepreneurs
The personal sacrifices of being a food founder - the stuff no one posts about on Instagram
If you've ever dreamed of turning your recipe into a real business, this episode will inspire you — and give you the real talk you need to actually do it.
⭐ This podcast is brought to you by Back of House.io, the foodservice industry’s most trusted resource for restaurant tech.
Learn more at: https://backofhouse.io/
⭐ Season 5 of So You Want to Run A Restaurant is proudly sponsored by RestauRent, the no-fee booking platform helping restaurants book private and group events.
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⭐ Learn More About Maya's Cookies
https://www.mayascookies.com/
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