A MAN has revealed how he turned his passion for baking into a £156million business.
Seth Berkowitz always had a sweet tooth and one night while he was in college, he was craving a snack.
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He didn’t want to order pizza or chips, but he wanted a warm cookie, but he couldn’t find a delivery location.
Seth decided to take matters into his own hands and started coming up with a plan for a business that would stay open until 2am.
He spent £120 on baking supplies and spent the summer coming up with recipes.
His wife then came up with the name Insomnia Cookies, because she felt it was meant for people who have trouble sleeping and need something warm and comforting to help them through.
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Seth started selling cookies on his college campus and even went door to door to student houses.
“It wasn’t that popular at first, it wasn’t until the school newspaper wrote an article about me,” Seth said CNBC.
After the article was published, Seth went from three orders a night to 80.
By the end of the university semester he had earned £8,000 from the business.
In his next During the semester, Seth created a website and combined baking cookies in his kitchen with studying for his exams.
In his final year of university, he rented an off-campus kitchen and hired staff to help him.
He started supplying other universities and then opened a store in New York.
Business continued to go well and Insomnia Cookies now has over 260 stores across the UK, US and Canada.
And in 2018, Krispy Kreme bought a majority stake in the company, for around £109 million.
The store sells a wide range of cookies, cakes and brownies, and some locations are now open until 2am.
“I take a lot proud “When I see the growth around me,” Seth said.
How to start your own business?
Dragon’s Den star Theo Paphitis revealed his tips for budding entrepreneurs:
- One of the biggest barriers that aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners face is a lack of self-confidence. You have to believe in your idea — and more than that, be the one to bore your friends to death with it.
- Never be afraid to make decisions. Once you have an idea, the confidence to make decisions is crucial to starting and maintaining a business.
- If you don’t take calculated risks, you’re standing still. If a decision turns out to be wrong, identify it quickly and act on it if you can. If you can’t, find someone else who can.
- It’s okay not to get it right the first time. My experience of making bad decisions has helped build my confidence and made me who I am today.
- Never underestimate the power of social media and remember that the internet is an equal opportunity for small businesses.
- Don’t forget to dream. A machine can’t do that!
“I feel proud when I see insomniacs enjoying our product.”
“I can’t thank enough the people who made this possible, who made it possible and who supported me on this crazy journey,” he continued.
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