Olivia Carpenter’s life as a baker and scholar serving candy, delicate cookies to the individuals of New York for the previous few years concerned baking as much as a whole bunch of her signature treats into the late night time after which individually wrapping them.
As she baked and packaged and repeated on sleep-deprived days, budding friendships alongside the way in which, she discovered develop her enterprise and maintain the provision to satisfy her clients’ super demand.
With an authentic base recipe that she’s used since highschool, all her cookies — from the chocolate, peanut butter sweet Buckeye, a tribute to her Ohio roots, to the scrumptious lemon-flavored Lemmie Boy with gluten-free and vegan choices — in her award-winning enterprise are made with the intention of centering taste and honoring neighborhood.
Present in Ithaca Bakery, Inexperienced Star and now within the Autumn Leaves Bookstore on choose days, the Ithaca Faculty alumna’s cookies can be going to the highest, in response to Carpenter, as she shifts the enterprise from part-time to full-time.
“I can go full pressure,” she mentioned.
From Ohio To New York, neighborhood stands on the coronary heart of By way of’s Cookies
When she first created her authentic cookie recipe, Carpenter needed to win her highschool class presidency in Ohio by sharing her cookies. She continued as a result of individuals needed extra, so she might pay for college actions. However she hit a barrier.
“Truly, my college tried to close me down,” she mentioned. She remembers that she was referred to as to the college’s administrative workplace and instructed she couldn’t promote them anymore as a result of it disrupted lunch gross sales.
“I noticed different college students who have been pursuing their (companies) not getting shut down. They usually have been all white,” Carpenter mentioned.
As a Black scholar from one of many solely households of coloration locally at her highschool, she took discover and refused to let her enterprise fall to the wayside. She continued to promote her cookies, simply exterior of faculty.
When she first got here to Ithaca, she entered Ithaca Faculty’s start-up enterprise competitors, Demo Day, the place individuals have been requested to determine a spot out there. She discovered two gaps that now drive her enterprise mission –– tasty gluten-free merchandise and help for LGBTQ and BIPOC college students in want of economic help.
“There’s an enormous drawback with racism and anti-Blackness in America. And I used to be like, what if by way of this enterprise I help college students similar to me who’re struggling in faculty to pay payments and stuff like that? What if I help them by way of this enterprise?” Carpenter mentioned.
From profitable the Viewers Alternative Award and Sustainability Award, together with funding at her first Demo Day competitors in 2020, to facilitating the latest competitors, Carpenter’s entrepreneurial prowess has grown through the years with time and follow.
Coming from a small city in Ohio, she observed the methods by which her buddies hid till they may discover a extra welcoming, protected atmosphere exterior of their hometown.
“They have been coming into who they actually have been as individuals,” Carpenter mentioned.
From that first competitors on, she’s donated 5% of her proceeds to LGBTQ Black, indigenous, Latinx and different college students of coloration, plus the donations she receives at totally different occasions on a month-to-month foundation. Every scholar discovered through social media — a supply of mutual support for a lot of — is highlighted on her Instagram and website.
“I’m actually simply making an attempt to be a very good individual, and to offer to those that need assistance, and to reward them for his or her laborious work to get into faculty and to assist maintain them there.”
By way of’s Cookies navigates its future
With trial and error, Carpenter perfected her gluten-free cookies, every time perfecting the science.
From Nothing Nowhere Ithaca, the primary place within the metropolis she bought her cookies, she’s since then bought her delicate cookies (with gluten-free and vegan choices) at Ithaca Bakery, Dewitt Inexperienced Star, native college occasions, farmers markets, festivals and extra.
This success, nonetheless, didn’t come with out the problem of balancing college, household, buddies, schlepping by way of sleep-deprived days, a couple of missed deadlines and determining run a enterprise.
“Regardless that I am a enterprise scholar, they by no means talked about gross sales taxes, any of those lessons. And I need assistance,” Carpenter mentioned.
Whereas Carpenter mentioned she continues to be determining the logistical components of her enterprise and planning for its future, her enterprise allowed her to satisfy individuals who’ve proven love and help.
“I’ve by no means felt a lot love from a neighborhood earlier than. Like, I by no means skilled this type of similar to help from individuals I do not even know. And it is loopy. And I similar to, I am so grateful for that.”
Her journey and progress have fortified her perception in herself, the work she does and grounded her.
“I’ve had a extremely unhealthy behavior of downplaying my accomplishments, like my total life, simply due to numerous the actually oppressive beliefs that society has about ladies, ladies of coloration…” she mentioned.
As her enterprise turns into a full-time facet of her life, she hopes to take it multinational through the years (beginning first with increasing her basis in New York), develop her donations by making a basis that provides grants to BIPOC and LGBTQ college students and construct her workforce, collaborating with extra companies, artists and others.
With a location now within the upstairs of Autumn Leaves Bookstore primarily for particular occasions and decide up orders, her cookies are additionally out there on the Dewitt Mall’s Inexperienced Star, Trumansburg Farmer’s Market each Wednesday 4 to 7 p.m., Ithaca Bakery, upcoming festivals, farmers markets, in addition to on-line orders by way of her website and for catering.
“I’m pleased with myself … and I need to shout it from the rooftops,” Carpenter mentioned.
What you’ll discover right here
Candy delicate cookies in a ray of flavors, from peanut butter to Galactic fudge, lemon to a traditional chocolate chip with vegan and gluten-free choices out there for many flavors.
Caroline Johnson is a meals, drink and tradition reporter on the Ithaca Journal. Electronic mail her at cejohnson@gannett.com. Observe her on @carolinewrites2 on Twitter for extra tales and graphics.
