Cookie Queen Jo set to expand baking start-up business

Jo Onda set up Cookie Queen business making cookie sandwiches and now she's expanding

2 December 2020 0 comments

By Olivier Vergnault

Jo Onda is the founder of Cookie Queen near Hayle (Image: SWIG Finance)

An artisan cookie sandwich maker is set for expansion after moving into new premises and revamping her website.

Jo Onda, the owner of Cookie Queen baking business, is the latest entrepreneur to benefit from the Start Up Loan scheme.

She received £25k in Start Up funding via SWIG Finance to expand her West Cornwall business.

With the money, Jo has been able to take on larger premises, fit an industrial kitchen, build a website and invest in marketing activities.

Some of the flavours on offer from Jo's Cookie Queen business (Image: Cookie Queen)

Jo, who has been baking since she was a child, said: “I’m really excited to be running my own business.

"The funding I received has really helped me to transition my business from selling at farmers markets to selling online nationally.

“My business manager, Nicki, was able to share valuable insight and advice to support my loan application.”

Jo, who is based near Hayle, Cornwall, began her journey as an entrepreneur by selling baked goods at local farmers markets and hospitality business owners soon got in touch to enquire about stocking her products.

Jo Onda is the founder of Cookie Queen, whcih specialises in cooke sandwiches (Image: SWIG Finance)

The business idea came to Jo when she spotted a gap in the market for a product that was halfway between a cake and a cookie. Jo knew she needed to create a product that a customer could buy and transport more easily than a slice of cake.

Using her top-secret recipe, Cookie Queen makes luxury cookie sandwiches filled with buttercream.

The cookie sandwiches are currently available in 12 different flavours including standard flavours such as chocolate, and chocolate orange.

The more adventurous flavours on offer include Oreo, Ferro Rocher and lemon and blueberry, and a variety of seasonal flavours are created throughout the year.

Jo now sells her products online via Cookie Queen’s own website, at local farmers markets and in cafes in nearby towns.

While Covid-19 has inevitably impacted her growth plans, the pandemic did help facilitate the transition from a local to national bakery by forcing her to adapt her business to an online model.

Cookie Queen is now able to distribute products to customers across the UK.

SWIG’s Start Up Loans business manager, Nicki Kimberley, who facilitated the loan for Jo said: “Jo has worked so hard to bring her business to this position.

"As a Merchant Navy wife and mother to a four-year old, what Jo has achieved is admirable.

“She has a well-defined long-term vision and she knows what steps she will need to take to achieve her goals.”