Jessica Nguyen on Business Ownership and Advice For Other Female Entrepreneurs
/SFU Alumni, Jessica Nguyen runs the small local business BAK’D Cookies with her brother Andy Nguyen. Learn how she got started, Jessica’s tips for entrepreneurship and how COVID-19 inspired her to take the plunge in a career change.
Tell me a little bit about yourself.
As a BBA Honours graduate class of 2020, I entered a tough job market. Most places were on a hiring freeze due to the pandemic and the uncertainty of it all.
During my bachelors, I always described myself as a hard working student who was making the most of the resources and opportunities presented to me. I graduated with two concentrations: Marketing and Managing Information Systems (MIS) and I obtained a Business Analytics Decision Making (BADM) certificate. While balancing my school work, I have been a part of many SFU organizations such as Competitors of Tomorrow (JDC West), Bright Ideas (Enactus), and WISE (Young Women In Business). In addition, I was previously elected as the Business Faculty Representative for the Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS) with a re-election win the following year as the VP of Student Life for the SFSS.So during the peak of the pandemic's unknowns, I decided to create an opportunity for myself. I started a passion project called BAK'D Cookies with my younger brother and it has now become my full time job. I’ve always been an avid food lover, especially with baked treats so this was the perfect job for me.
My goal is to provide the lower mainland with freshly bakd 5 oz gooey and delicious cookies in fun and creative flavours. Within 18 months while wearing many hats, I was able to grow BAK'Ds revenues to over $250,000. So yeah, I guess that’s a little bit about myself!
What is BAK’D?
BAK’D is what people have called “Vancouver's Best Cookies!” Founded in April 2020, BAK'D is a brother and sister owned company that makes 5 oz gourmet cookies.
BAK’D cookies are not like your typical cookies. They are BIG cookies, made locally, with high quality ingredients. Each cookie is freshly baked and handmade to guarantee that each bite is the perfect bite, every time.
We offer a wide variety of gourmet cookie flavours as well as our take on everyone’s favourite classic cookie flavours.
What inspired BAK’D and how did it come to be?
True to my core, I have always loved delicious treats, especially cookies and Andy has always been passionate about food science and baking. Growing up, we have always pretended to be like Carla from Bon Appetit and completed several “test kitchen” recipe development sessions.
During April 2020, early pandemic, I just finished my BBA at SFU Beedie and the job market was horrible. The job I had lined up said they were going on a hiring freeze and rescinded their offer for me and there was nothing available in the workplace. I was heartbroken and Andy wanted to make me feel better. He kept asking what he could do to cheer me up and I told him about these cookies I had in New York that I had been craving.
Andy tried to order the cookies to our house but they wouldn’t ship to Canada. He then decided that he would research and develop his own recipe for these cookies and have me be the ultimate judge (and who wouldn’t feel better after eating several freshly baked cookies). So after countless hours, tears from laughter, eggs, sugar, flour, and interesting cookies, he was successful in perfecting what I (and our customers) call “the best cookies in Vancouver.”Can you tell me about how and what pushed you to take the adventure into entrepreneurship?
This is a funny question for me because I never thought of myself as an entrepreneur, especially one straight out of university. It seemed so unattainable and scary to me. I told people all throughout my degree that my dream job would be a “food-trepreneur” but it was a longs way away and I would not even know where to begin for that. I just thought that I would get a corporate 9-5 job and then figure it out from there after a few years of gaining experience.
Obviously that is not the case and COVID-19 was truly the catalyst that pushed me into pursuing my dreams of being a “food-treprenur.” I don’t think there was an actual moment where it all really clicked for me to be the co-founder for BAK’D but it was more like little steps here and there I took during the pandemic that got me to where I am.
It really just took one day during the “lockdown” when I was sad about job prospects and Andy was on a mission to try to make me feel better by baking me my favourite treats.
From your company Instagram account, it looks like you and your brother have a ton of fun together! What is it like to work closely with a family member, especially your sibling? Any advice?
I’m extremely lucky to call my younger brother my business partner. I’m also incredibly grateful for who he is as a person - he’s extremely mature, patient, and kind. Not to boast about it too much, but it’s honestly such a privilege to have him in my life.
When things go wrong, which is inevitable when running a business, I am usually up in flames combusting and Andy stays very cool, calm, and collected. He stays level headed and is truly the rock of the business.
People will always tell you never to go into business with family and friends. I disagree. It’s been an amazing two years and I could not imagine going through this experience with anyone else but Andy.
How has the pandemic impacted your business and how did you navigate the challenges of COVID-19?
We actually haven’t been impacted by COVID-19 as we started our business during the pandemic. Therefore, we have always navigated the unpredictability of this all and it would be kind of scary to operate in a “normal” world because we would have no idea what that would be like.
One thing for sure is that it is hard to know what to do because it is an unprecedented time. No one (even people who have been operating businesses for years) has any clue what would happen, when PHO would change, etc so you can’t really reach out to more experienced people for advice.
What has the pandemic taught you about your business and about yourself as a businesswoman?
The pandemic has taught me to never say no to myself. And what I really mean by that is that I always wanted to be a “food-treprenur” but I always told myself, what does that really mean?
It’s just something I saw a Chef who opened several restaurants call himself. How would I even get there? I am not a Chef. I am not someone with any culinary background, I just simply enjoyed eating good food. It’s just something that’s not realistic, I went to business school so I should just get a corporate job like everyone else. I told myself “no,” that I wasn’t ready, that I didn’t know enough about it, etc.
“Life is too short to not be doing what you want to be doing.”
Essentially, it’s the same as if you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take, the pandemic taught me to just believe in yourself and do it.
BAK’D is primarily e-commerce as well as offers farmer’s market visits. What advice do you have for woman entrepreneurs who are considering but hesitant about starting an e-commerce for their business?
It’s not as hard as you think! There are so many resources you can use to build your own e-commerce, everything is just a click or a simple Youtube tutorial away. If I can do it, anyone can. It may seem overwhelming as you try to figure out where to start but once you just break it down into smaller pieces and chip away slowly, you can get there.
What is your favourite thing about collaborating with small, local independent businesses?
The passion behind it all. Being a small, local independent business is not easy. There are so many challenges and hurdles one has to overcome. So for someone to continue to keep pursuing this tough journey, they have to love what they are doing. You can see it in the owner or founder’s eyes when they’re talking about the products and it’s just an unreal feeling different from purchasing from the “big guys”.
What advice would you give yourself back when you first started your business?
Be confident in yourself.
What is one piece of advice you would give to other young women entrepreneurs?
Don’t be so hard on yourself. I remember being a student and almost combusting into tears over the stress I had put on myself as I struggled to balance obtaining high grades, being super involved, and maintaining a social life.
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We are so grateful that Jessica was able to share her experiences with us. If you would like to check out her business or connect with BAK’D, check out their social media here:
Website: https://bakdcookies.ca/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bakdcookies/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bakdcookies
By: Karen Shen