Today we’d like to introduce you to Verandah McKinney.
Hi Verandah, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I remember baking cookies with my mom. It was usually on weekends so she could supervise my ingredient mixing and eventual dealings with the oven. I have fond memories of storing fresh baked cookies in empty oats canisters and huge up-cycled mayonnaise containers (a family of 6 goes through a humorous amount of mayo). Sneaking into those containers to get cookies was one of the greatest thrills of life!
I remember my first entrepreneurial bout with cookie sales (well, second really- I am a former, highly decorated Girl Scout with cookie sales that soared into the thousands yearly). When I was a Junior in High School, I earned the opportunity to study abroad in advance of college and briefly lived in China. It was an opportunity through The American Forum for Global Education and it changed the trajectory of my life. As you are probably aware, traveling abroad can be super expensive, so my mom did what she did best, she made a way. We baked and sold cookies.
But they weren’t just any cookies. When I think about it, these cookies were BAK’D! Made with only the BEST locally sourced ingredients. Cookies available at AFFORDABLE prices. Crafted with KINDNESS and globally sustainable practices. Incredibly DELICIOUS homemade flavor and charm. Little did I know, these qualities would make up the acronym of BAK’D.
Our cookies were a huge hit! In fact, my parents sold SO many orders, I was able to take quite a bit of spending money with me. I still have souvenirs from almost 20 years ago!
So now, here we are, well, here I am, crafting cookies from scratch BAK’D with YOU in mind! My parents are deservingly retired from the cookie biz and living their BEST lives. No more lifting heavy Girl Scout cookie boxes for my dad or baking for my mom.
When starting this brand, it was super important to me that my cookies could be enjoyed by anyone, anywhere, anytime and that they were of better quality than something you’d find on a grocery store shelf. There are no chemical preservatives, shelf stabilizers, or anything that would unnaturally extend the life of any of my products. I knew I wanted BAK’D products to be enjoyed by adults at the office, my own children at school on the playground, and anyone at home needing a snack break without all the excess sugar.
Supporting the health goals of those I love has been a driving force in the research, development, and production of cookie options that are low-sugar and gluten-free. My parents, youngest brother, and close friends manage life with diabetes. Providing options that are inclusive of their lifestyles (and others) is non-negotiable. EVERYONE deserves access to good food that does good things for their bodies.
Every single batch is uniquely crafted yet consistent and made with sustainable baking practices (trust me, my husband is vocal about the energy bill).
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Realizing the product and brand came rather easily, so I’m thankful for that. A significant challenge has been and continues to be navigating the world of business and making informed decisions with information and documents that tend to be full of difficult-to-understand jargon, rules, and regulations. Forming the business structure gave me so much anxiety because I wanted it all to be right and I wanted my brand and products to be properly protected.
The advent of the internet was a great and terrible thing. Sifting through the almost infinite sources of information makes it difficult to parse out truth when it comes to creating, operating, and scaling a business. That is completely frustrating. The noise of opinions has been an interesting challenge. While I highly value the thoughts and ideas of others, it is easy for me to get lost in the weeds of things that actually don’t matter.
My ultimate challenge is consistently doing the self-work and thought work necessary for entrepreneurship. Managing your mind and your emotions is about 97% of the game and when I’m doing both with fidelity, I have the most success.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about BAK’D by McKinney Makes?
BAK’D by McKinney Makes offers scratch-baked cookies for home, school, and the office. Our cookies are preservative-free and made with high-quality locally sourced ingredients. BAK’D cookies come individually wrapped for freshness in upwards of 15 different traditional, gourmet, and seasonal flavors.
We offer gluten-free, low sugar, and frozen cookie dough options. Our gluten-free cookies are most popular because they eliminate 3 gluten-free baking pain points–1. No gritty mouth feels. 2. No overly crumbly texture. 3. No overtly nutty after taste. Our low sugar options, as reported by a diabetic customer, allowed them to have two cookies per day and have blood sugars stay within desired range.
When working with corporate and bulk buyers we offer discounted rates making it perfect to host meetings, parties, and other events within budget.
I’m most proud of the philanthropy I’ve been able to engage in because of BAK’D. Cookie sales as a Girl Scout taught me about entrepreneurship. Cookie sales as a young woman sent me to China. I’m blessed in that I get to pay it all forward. I created The BAK’D Outdoors as a sponsorship fund that works to send girls and young women from underserved communities to places domestically and abroad, they’ve never been before. Currently, BAK’D is sponsoring Shenita Lawson in her journey to Olympic Westling.
Shenita Lawson is 52-0 this season and wrestles in the largest classification in the state of Texas. She has just completed her Senior year at Euless Trinity High School and her dream is to try out for the US Olympic team. Shenita is a two-time regional champion, district champion, state runner-up, two-time FolkStyle All American, and Texas state 180 Freestyle champion and she is officially on Team Texas and will compete against other teams from around the world. This June she will travel to Tulsa, Oklahoma and in July she will travel to North Dakota to compete in front of US Olympic Coach Terry Steiner and College Coaches. BAK’D is proud to sponsor Shenita and believes cost should not be a barrier to entry for girls’ travel and personal development. To support Shenita and The BAK’D Outdoors Fund, visit mckinneymakes.com/donate
How can people work with you, collaborate with you, or support you?
To support The BAK’D Outdoors Fund, visit mckinneymakes.com/donate
To contact Verandah directly, email mckinneymakes@gmail.com
BAK’D is always looking to collaborate with other businesses and organizations.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.mckinneymakes.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/bakdbymckinneymakes
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/bakdbymckinneymakes
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/bakdbymm
Image Credits
Verandah McKinney
