Those who crave something sweet can get their hands on cookies, butter tarts and other tasty treats with just an email.
Rae’s Gone Kookie is a small-batch baking business in Guelph that specializes in made-to-order treats, all done through email. Rachel Crysler, the owner of Rae’s Gone Kookie, said her business aims to make baked goods accessible and affordable.
“I wanted to be able to provide something that was affordable for the most part because I know we have a lot of bakeries here, and I find some are high-end, and almost overpriced, and I wanted to be affordable and accessible to people," said Crysler.
Rae’s Gone Kookie sells a dozen cookies for $15, and butter tarts as six for $15 or 12 for $25. To see more baked goods, check out the business's Facebook page.
“I sell a fair amount of stuff, a lot of people want cookies and a lot of people want butter tarts," said Crysler. “A lot of people love it.”
Recently, the business has started offering Danish braids, plain croissants and pain au chocolat, alternatively called chocolate croissants.
Through learning to work with new techniques and recipes, Crysler said she looks at the tips and tricks in order to put a new spin on classic staples.
“I definitely want to keep experimenting with that stuff and have new options,” she said. “I’d like to start offering some different products as well, maybe not necessarily cakes and stuff like that, but different things that are hard to come by around here.”
Working as an administrative assistant at a grocery store during the week, Crysler said her manager inspired the idea to start a baking business as she would often bring in treats for her co-workers.
“He said to me, ‘You could sell these,’ and I thought, ‘Oh, that’s not a bad idea.’” she said about the interaction. “It’s just trying to bring in a little extra money as well, and I love baking and giving treats to people, it just kind of started and people started to order things.”
When the pandemic hit, Crysler decided to try offering treats as a side hustle and grow her skills. The business was met with interest right away.
“I figured I could deliver things and be available,” she said. “I thought people would be wary of purchasing those kinds of things, but I found it was not doing too bad.”
Since life has started to pick up again, Crysler said she hasn’t been pushing the business as much, but has learned a lot this past year. In the future, she said she would be open to taking her business on full-time.
“It’s something I have a real passion for and love, and if I ever had the chance to expand it, I would," said Crysler, “I’m gaining confidence and trying new things and getting comfortable with baking all kind to different things."
“It’s nice to have this as a hobby, it’s something I enjoy doing on a regular basis.”
For the holidays, Crysler said she isn’t planning on selling specialty goods, but is accepting custom orders. Anyone who would like to place an order can do so through email at [email protected].
