Wacky Cookies - A Creative Woman´s Solution to the Financial Bust!

Aymee Van Dyke

Have you ever been instantly drawn to a stranger in the midst of a crowd? That´s how I felt towards Aymee Van Dyke (neé Rodriguez) when I met her at a networking event three years ago when she was promoting her personal development biz. She has great energy and many virtues and talents – too many to fit into a blog post – but in this entry I´ll focus on her Wacky Cookies venture. Aymee makes beautiful and mouth-watering cookies that are more than that … they are a gourmet experience.

Aymee was – as  many of us – hit by the financial bust. That’s when she launched her cookie business. Read on if you want to be inspired!

LCL.-  When and how did you start Wacky Cookies?


AVD.- I started Wacky Cookies from my home  in 2008.  My Personal Development business was in a slump. The economy ripped and people were no longer investing in themselves... I had started baking when I was 3, flouring pans for my mom who was a cake designer and owned a restaurant and catering business, and saw that there was a renaissance of comfort food due to the situation with the economy. I started by making a batch of cookie pops… My mom used to make those and I loved them as a kid.


LCL.-  What sets you aside from other Cookie ventures?


My kids´ favorite Wacky Cookies!

AVD.- We bake everything fresh to order.. I mean we even hand mix the cookie dough.. And cut each cookie by hand.. Nothing is produced by a machine. Everything is 100% fresh. Our icings are mixed with nothing but the best and kosher ingredients. I don’t use vegetable shortenings or any of that artificial stuff that is normally in cookies, no artificial preservatives.  I figure if you are going to have something decadent, it might as well be the best...  
I customize cookies. You can call me and I can have a cookie cutter made for a special occasion and we can customize everything from the taste, to the color to your name.  

We are an Internet-based business (closed bakery/no storefront) which allows me more time to personalize our service, instead of having to constantly "drop" what we are doing to rush to the front of the shop and take care of people who come in.  We deliver cake and cookies to you! No hassles with picking stuff up. We bring it to your doorstep.

Organic Princess Cake

LCL.- What is your definition of Success?

AVD.- My definition of success is doing what you love to do all day, every day and being paid for it...That is the ultimate success! My greatest achievement was when I went out of my comfort zone to make a last minute princess castle for a 4-year-old little girl.  She loved it! The sugar work took me two days (which is actually not that long in the cake business) but it was just beautiful. When we delivered it to her hotel, everyone in the lobby gasped that was a great moment for me. Very humbling.
 


My biggest goals for the future: I have to say I would LOVE to become the Sylvia Weinstock of cookies.  She is considered the Da Vinci of cakes, and well, she is just a remarkable cake designer.  As a cookie designer I am always trying to learn new techniques and my biggest desire is to continue to grow and develop my skills as a sugar artist. There is so much room for innovation in this field. I want to take cookies to a whole new level.  A cookie, as an edible piece of art can make a happy occasion into an amazing one. It can also transform a person’s mood if they are having a particularly bad day.  
 


Website and email: www.WackyCookies.com

email: sales@wackycookies.com
 

tel no : 703-330-2264 
 

www.lorrainecladish.com