103: From the Food Network to Starting a Subscription Box with The Cheerful Baker

I've got a super special episode today. Launch Your Box member Lauren Jacob was just featured on the Food Network. I had no idea what an incredible story she had to share until I started this interview. Come join us.

Welcome to the Launch Your Box podcast with weekly tips, tricks, and strategies to start, launch, and grow your subscription box. Now here's your host, Sarah Williams.

Welcome back to the Launch Your Box podcast. Today I have a super special episode. If you're a Launch Your Box member, you know that just a few weeks ago we watched Lauren on the Food Network. She was in the Christmas cookie challenge and I was like, girl, I gotta get you on the podcast. We gotta talk about all the things. So we're gonna break down Lauren's story from start to finish. We're gonna talk about her backstory. We're gonna talk about her launching her subscription box. We're gonna talk about the growth of her subscription box, cuz that's been a huge win for her this year. And then we're gonna get into all the nitty-gritty cuz I got lots of questions about her Food Network debut. So Lauren, welcome to the podcast. Why don't you just introduce yourself and tell them a little bit about your business and your subscription?

Thank you for having me, Sarah. This is so fun because I've listened to every one of your episodes. So to be on here is pretty exciting. Let's see, I started— I was working at a little school as an art teacher because my son has had a— still has a severe learning disability. He has dyslexia, and I wanted to be where he was, and that's a big part of my cookie decorating story, which is why I like to talk about that. I was always the classroom mom because I wanted to be where my kids were, and so I would try decorating cookies, and they weren't very pretty. They tasted good, but I didn't, I didn't know what I was doing. So I saw on Instagram a really good friend of mine had posted some beautiful cookies, and I called her. I said, how did you do that? And she said, well, I took an online class. You ought to take an online class. And I thought, okay, you know, if it's creative, I'll try it. I took one class, then I took another class, and then another class, and for me it was a great stress reliever, because, like I said in the beginning, my son was really struggling in school, and that's very hard on the child and on the parent. And so I really, really dove into cookie decorating and found that it was something that I absolutely loved. So I ended up quitting my job and just decorating cookies full time. And then my husband wanted a 3D printer, and I thought, why do we need a 3D printer? I didn't even know what a 3D printer was.

Yeah.

But then I realized, oh, I can make cookie cutters on a 3D printer.

Shut up. Is that how you started making your cookie cutters? Yes.

I love it. So I said, okay, buy, buy the 3D printer. So he, I mean, the minute those words came outta my mouth, he had his fingers on the keyboard, you know, pushing pay now. Again, I took another class. I'm big on learning and, you know, trying new things. So I took another class on how to model cookie cutters, how to make and design cookie cutters. I already had the art part down. I could draw and I knew how to design things in Procreate. I learned how to do it on the computer, and then I created my first file, sent it to him, he printed it, and I thought, This is gonna revolutionize my life because I was spending a fortune on cookie cutters.

Okay?

And when you're artistic like me, you need 15,000 of everything. So I didn't just have one Santa cutter, you know. I had 20.

Yeah.

And being able to design those and print them myself was great. So that is how I started the Cheerful Cutters. Cookie cutter shop, really just for fun for me. And so it gave my husband a reason to buy 3D printers. I love it.

So you're selling cookie cutters. You're also decorating and selling cookies, right?

Yes.

At what point did you start teaching? Because I love, I love this story, Lauren, because you're a learner. You're a learner like me. Like, I'm, I'm just a learner.

I love to learn.

And so I'm learning and implementing, and you were learning and implementing, and you were learning more and implementing. At what point did you say, you know what, I can teach this?

It was whenever I wanted to quit my job and stay home and do this full-time. I knew the amount of money that I needed to make because my kids were still going to private school and I wanted to help out in that way by paying the tuition. And so I worked backwards and I figured out, okay, I want to make this certain amount of money. How many cookies would I need to sell? Well, it was a lot, and I didn't wanna make that. I didn't wanna do that. So I thought, okay, what other streams of revenue can I have? Well, I was a teacher. I love to teach. I mean, that is my happy place when I'm surrounded by people and I'm teaching them how to do something. I thought, okay, I, I know how to do this. I know how to decorate cookies. I know how to teach. I'm just gonna put a class out there and see what happens. That's kind of what I do, Sarah. Okay. I have this idea and then before I really think it through, I do it. So that's—

I feel like you're a lot like me in that way because I'm like the same way. I'm like, oh, this is good. Okay, let's go do this. And we throw it all together and we put it out in the world and then it's like, oh, it's, it's a success. Okay, let's make it better.

Yeah, that's exactly what I did. So I started out by having classes in my home. Okay. Which was really fun. It was mainly people that I knew, so I wasn't weird about inviting people into my home. And it was fun. And I thought, man, this is great. And then I realized that I knew somebody that owned a winery. So I approached them and I said, you know, would you like to have wine and cookie classes? They're like, yes. I've never been afraid to just put myself out there. I approached them, we started doing classes there, and that is my favorite part of what I do is teaching people what I do because it just brings so much happiness to other people and to me to see their success. This.

Yeah. So when did you take your teaching online then? Because you were doing it in person. At what point did you say, okay, if I'm gonna replicate this, which means I gotta replicate me, right? And I gotta teach more people and get out of, you know, my little area that I live in. I gotta go online, right?

Yes. About 2 years ago, I guess, probably during the pandemic when we were all at home. Mm-hmm. I took this course and it was how to do better on Instagram and it was all with video. And so I thought, okay, I'm gonna start teaching little bitty blips of how to decorate cookies on Instagram. Through that, I started becoming comfortable in front of the camera, knowing what to do, how, you know, what I needed to be able to do a good video. When I decided to do the subscription box, I had taught in person, but I was used to making the videos, and I thought, okay, I can put those things together. To create this online course that then can go out to a lot of people.

Yeah.

And I did that in response to me being on the Food Network because they first contacted me, it was over a year ago. It was in November. Okay.

So that, I saw your, your notes that you sent to me before the podcast and you have, I was contacted by the Food Network. And then I started a subscription box and I'm like, wait a minute, she's had her subscription box for like 7 or 8 months, right? Like, I, I was very curious about how that happened. So you were contacted by the Food Network. You didn't have your subscription box yet. No. You were selling the cookie cutters in your online shop. Yes. And you were teaching kind of in person.

Right.

How did they find you? Was it through these short videos that you were posting?

Yes. Somebody said to me one time, you know, if you ever aspire to be on the Food Network, which for what I do that, that is the big, you know, that is the top of the top. Then you need to set yourself apart because there are thousands and thousands of cookie decorators. And so I started doing these silly dances on Instagram. You know, I would, I just did things. I showed my face a ton. I did things that I feel like set me apart from other people. Because the thing is, I know how to decorate cookies. Am I the best at it? No, I can give you hundreds of other accounts where they are a better cookie decorator than I am, but I have a good personality.

I think your cookies are amazing, and you are discounting your skills and ability right now in front of me. I'm gonna call you on that because your cookie decorating is amazing. So let's just get that straight.

We're always too hard on ourselves. But, you know, my gift is I'm happy, I am personable, and I thought I need to let those things show. And so I started, you know, doing other things besides just cookie decorating, dancing with cookies and, you know, showing my face more so that they would realize that there was a person behind these videos. And that's what got me noticed.

Were you tagging the Food Network in these?

No.

They were just— they— you were using the hashtags. They were finding you through those hashtags.

Yes.

And so they reach out to you and how— what does that look like? They say what?

Through— it was through— it's funny you mentioned hashtags because somebody contacted me. It was a talent scout for the Food Network.

Okay.

They sent me a message on Instagram and they said, would you be interested in talking with us about being on the Christmas Cookie Challenge. And honestly, Sarah, I really did think it was a hoax. I tell everybody this, but it's so true because what I did immediately is I went and I looked at this person's Instagram profile and it did not say anything about the Food Network. It didn't look overly professional. And so I didn't think that it was real. But then I thought, okay, why, why not? So I said, The next day when I spoke with her on the phone, I said, how did you find me? And she said, through a hashtag. She didn't tell me what hashtag that was. It was probably something to do with Christmas cookies. But I found that very interesting. So she said, would you like to talk to me? I said, sure. So the next day she called. And because I didn't think that it was real, I mean, I laugh a lot anyway, but we talked, I laughed, you know, she said, I'll never forget this. She She said, do you watch the Christmas Cookie Challenge? And I said, oh yeah, I watch it every year. She said, have you ever watched it and thought, I need to be up there? I said, no, I have not thought that, which was true. I said, you know, I'm, I live in a little small town in Kentucky. I bake in my kitchen. I have never once looked at that show and thought I need to be up there because I didn't think that that was an achievable goal. Yeah, but by the end of this conversation where I was totally myself, meaning I wasn't trying to be all professional, I just thought, you know, I am who I am. And we just had a great conversation. At the end of it, she said, I'm going to send your name on to one of the producers. And I thought, okay, haha. Well, then I got home because I was in the car and I got this very official looking—

wait a minute. Do y'all hear this? She took a call from a talent scout on the Food Network from her car because she didn't even think it was that serious, right? Is that what—

that is totally— that is exactly what happened. In fact, this is probably TMI, but it is funny. I had been to the— for my yearly gynecologist visit when she called me and she said, because I told her I had a doctor's appointment, she said, how was your doctor's appointment? I'm like, oh, it was great. It was a gynecologist. You know how much fun that is. If I would have thought it was serious, I would not have said that.

I love that. I love that about you.

But so anyway, I get this very official letter from the Food Network and I thought, wow, this, this is real. So then I had multiple Zoom interviews before I was chosen because she contacted me first in November. And then I think I had another interview 2 more interviews in December. I was hoping, of course, that I would get on the show. And I was thinking, if I do get on the show, how is this going to impact my business? Because it is going to impact it. I mean, I was hoping it would impact it in some way. My first thought was, well, people, if I do a good job, people will want me to make cookies for them. But, but I can't ship cookies in Kentucky. It's against the law. I can't ship cookies. So I thought, well, that won't work. Then I thought, well, maybe they would buy my cookie cutters. You know, I could ship cookie cutters. And I thought, well, that would be good.

But, you know, that's—

cookie cutters aren't that expensive. And my child is going to— is in college. So I'm thinking, how can I really—

I love your thought process behind this because we're not even on the Food Network yet, but we— there's a huge potential that we're going to be on the Food Network and your brain instantly goes, How can I leverage this, right? Grow my business and create revenue from it. And I love the way that you're doing that.

I love the way that you just said that, because that's, that's what I was trying to get out of my head. So I'm thinking all these things and I thought, okay, I love teaching. I know how to make cookie cutters. Maybe I'll do a class in a box because I didn't know anybody that was doing that. Now there's people who send out cookie cutters. But I still haven't found anyone who does exactly what I do. Okay. And so I had a friend who had a subscription box and she was in your program and she had mentioned— because I had this idea probably in November. So she said, well, if you're thinking about it, you should join Launch Your Box. So I did and it was closed. So I put my name on the list and I just sort of put it in the back burner. And it was so crazy, Sarah, because I got into Launch Your Box practically about the same time that they called me to be on the Food Network.

Okay.

That's not a coincidence. I don't believe in coincidences. I love that. I created, you know, I put together— I thought as a cookie decorator, what would I want in a box? And so I would want a coordinated set of cookie cutters because we— I used to spend hours trying to find cookie cutters that all went together. I would want the clip art because that's important. You want to know how to decorate the cookies, and I would want a step-by-step tutorial because that's how I learned, is watching someone else do it. I put together all those things. My husband pushed the pay now button again and bought a few more printers, and from concept like real concept to execution, it was literally 3 days. Oh my gosh. Which is crazy because I had no idea what I was doing.

Yeah.

I had a lunch date with my friend who already had a subscription box and I'm like, here's what I'm going to do. And she said, okay. And, and I called her 3 days later. I'm like, the box is live. And she said, what?

How'd you do that so fast?

We just talked about this. But I watched I watched all your videos. I mean, I watched all your videos and I just did it. And I thought, you know, I'll figure out my mistakes later. And there were a heck of a lot of mistakes.

Can we pause this right here? I don't, I, I actually don't recommend you launch your subscription box in 3 days, but he, but I love that you did that because you just didn't overthink it. And I think so many of our members or people wanting to start a subscription box just constantly overthink every step of the way. And it drags out the process and it prevents them from actually launching and actually starting to make money for themselves. And so you're not worried about all the details. You're not worried about how messy it may be right now. You're not worried about that. You're not getting tripped up in your head about that. You're just doing the dang thing. Like you wanna do it, you're gonna do it.

Right.

And I, I love that. And I'm just gonna, I'm gonna note this here as a word of encouragement for anyone listening. That might just be in the overthinking stage, that might be thinking it has to be perfect or thinking you have to do all of the things before you can get it launched. You literally just need your product and you need a way for them to pay for it. That's really it. And then you get going and then you clean it up later. Right?

Right. Now I did have, I did have a big audience, so that's why I think I could get started. I had an email list of over 700 people. And it's so funny, Sarah, because I had been collecting these emails for years through my website and didn't even realize because I had never sent one email.

Oh my God.

But I had a big list.

I love this. You've been collecting them for a rainy day. We're going to use those later. I'm glad you did.

Yes. Someone said, you know, you need to set up an email list. So I did that, but I never did anything with it. And then I had a good following. I think at that time I probably had I don't know, 25,000 on Instagram and 4,000 on Facebook. So it would've been much more difficult had I not already had people to market this to.

Yes, absolutely. You'd already spent time nurturing this audience with all those cookie decorating videos. You were finding the perfect person. I find myself watching stuff like that all the time because I'm never gonna make cookies. Just first of all, I don't do that, but I love the process. I love the creativity. I love watching those videos. So you were probably attracting people like me. But you were also attracting people that, oh, I wanna learn how to do this. Oh, I'm also a cookie decorator. I wanna see what someone else is doing and getting inspiration from other people. So you were really building a strong audience just by your videos, just by the processes.

That's right.

So you launched this thing. What month do you launch it?

I think in March is when I launched it.

Okay. So March of last year, 2022, you launch your subscription and you get 18 subscribers.

Right. And I was thrilled. I couldn't believe it. I thought, oh my gosh, 18 people want my box. This is so exciting.

So you fire up those 3D printers, you're getting those cookie cutters printed, and you're putting together what will be the first box. Right now in your notes, you say, I steadily grew, and 6 months later I had 135 subscribers.

Yes.

So let's talk about that because we launched with 18 and that's a solid start, but getting over that 100 subscriber hump is where a lot of people kind of get stuck. So can we talk through a little bit about what you did over the next 6 months that helped you grow to 135?

Sure. Well, I knew for me, I think that this helped with what I sell. I wanted a, a beautiful box. In a nice presentation. So I did that from the beginning. I did spend a little bit more money on boxes because I wanted when they, when they receive something in the mail for it to be really, really special. Yeah, I think that that sort of helped, which I know it sounds silly. It's just a box. But I had people say to me, I get so excited when I see that beautiful box in the mailbox. The way that I grew is I constantly put it out there. I constantly talked about it. I constantly sent emails to people, not constantly, but weekly. I use Klaviyo, which I love, and it tells, you know, it gives me information on people that, that might be interested in purchasing the box. And so I nurture them. I didn't really discount the product. I did that maybe the second month, and then I realized that's just a lot for me to keep track of. And I felt like I was giving people a great experience, a great— yeah, yeah, good value. Yes, a very good value. And so I didn't feel like I needed to do that. But I did videos, box openings. I did videos of decorating the cookies in the box so little, so they wouldn't get the whole whole entire cookie decorating process, but they would get a little bit of it. I did weekly Facebook Lives. Yes. Where I would talk to people. And this is all— seriously, Sarah, everything I did, I learned in Launch Your Box. I did exactly what you tell people to do.

I love it.

Because that's one thing that I have learned in my almost 55 years of life. If you wanna be successful, you find someone successful and you do what they do. Yeah. And so that's exactly what I did. I took out a few Facebook ads, but not that many.

So you, each month you were just growing a little at a time.

Yes.

And you were adding numbers in and then you, you got to over 100. And how does that feel to have over 100 subscribers, have that monthly recurring revenue hitting your bank account every month?

Here's the thing, Sarah, I got to 100 in 3 months.

3 months.

Yes.

That's crazy.

It was. I think I went from 18 to the second month, it was 60-something.

You tripled the third month too.

I did. And then the third month it got close to 100. And then in the fourth, I think it was the fourth month, we got over 100. It felt incredible. In fact, you can go back. I'm sure it's still on Facebook. My son, like I said, my oldest son has very severe dyslexia. In fact, I, I wrote a book called The Boy Who Lost His Colors, which is our story. Mm-hmm. And we didn't think he was ever gonna go to college. We just didn't think it was something that he wanted to do. He hated school so much. Well, he's in college and he's doing great. The first month that I had to— this might make me cry. I talk about this all the time, but it's such— it's just such an incredible story. I think of God's provision over my son's life, both my sons, but especially when you have one with a lot of difficulties, you can definitely see God's hand in that. The first month that I was 100 subscribers, I paid for my son's first month's college tuition.

Love that.

And you just cannot even imagine what an unbelievable feeling that was. Yeah. It was so powerful. I mean, I'm very fortunate that my husband has a great job and I would not need to earn money. I mean, we would do fine, but the fact that I did that, yeah. And I paid for it was huge.

I can see the pride on your face. Like I can feel it. When you tell that story, to be able to pay for that on your own with something you've built, something you've created. It's such an uplifting, confident moment in your life and to know that I can provide for him whatever he wants to do.

Yes.

And, and that fills your cup up and that's gonna drive you to keep doing more and to keep build, pouring into your audience, to keep growing your business, So that you can provide for him in whatever his path takes him on.

Right.

And just, and for yourself too, to know that you are capable of doing that and you built it from scratch. You built it out of wanting to make cookies for the kids at school in your son's—

right.

Like that is so powerful. And you went from there to here in a very short period of time.

Right.

And and then you end up on the freaking Food Network. Like, what is—

who are you?

Like, who are you?

Gosh, I'm so excited for you. I'm so excited for you. Thank you. I think one thing, Sarah, that's really important, and I know you talk about this, is to figure out your why.

Mm-hmm.

My why has nothing to do with money. Nothing. I'm not money-oriented. I'm people-oriented and happiness-oriented and children-oriented. So the money that I make from this helps my kids. Yeah. And that's, that's what keeps me going. Teaching the classes helps people take beautiful cookies into their kids' classes. Yeah, that brings me so much joy knowing that, because, you know, most of the subscribers to my box are moms or grandmothers. I think when you, you know, when you nail down really why you're doing this, why you're doing whatever kind of subscription box you're doing, it does help to propel you forward because it's hard work. You know, I thought I'm going to just stick a box out there every month. And as you know, that's not quite how it happens.

It's not really if you build it, they will come, right? Like you have to really—

you have to sell this stuff.

You have to show up and be a salesperson and nurture and do all these other things that actually sell the box.

Right, right.

Yes. And then you have to create the box, fulfill the box, ship the box, all of those things too. It's not as glamorous as anybody from the outside looking in, but dang it, it's so rewarding.

It is.

To be able to build an income for yourself and your family and to have that hit your bank account every single month, knowing that I don't have to show up and sell my face off every single day to pay the rent. Right? Like, that's right. Beauty of having a subscription box business.

Right.

I wanna dig in a little bit for a few minutes about your Food Network experience.

Okay.

So it sounds like it was like a year-long journey from kind of start to where we are right now.

It was.

I'm curious to know like a little bit of the behind the scenes. I don't know how much of an NDA you had to sign, but I'm, I'm wondering when did you film that episode and how long did you have to keep this a secret?

Okay, so I interviewed in November. They let me know in March. We filmed in April. I think we filmed in April. Then they said, you can't tell anyone.

And I thought, what were you about to explode? Like, I can only imagine, like, my thoughts. I'd be like, I want to go tell everybody.

And I couldn't. I couldn't. I mean, luckily my husband— my husband, Sarah, is so fantastic. In fact, for one of the interviews, he dressed up like Santa Claus. And while I was interviewing, he came into the camera and went, ho ho ho, I want to let you know what a good girl Lauren's been this year and you should have her on the Food Network. I think that's what got me on the show. So he signed one too. So it was great because I could talk to him about it. It was a very, very hard secret to keep because when you do something like that, you want to tell people. Yeah, but you sign this. But I understand why they don't want you to talk about it because the fun is in— I don't want to say the secrecy. If I had told everybody everything about it, yeah, it wouldn't have been as exciting. You know, I had a watch party at my house and it was so much fun because nobody knew anything.

Yeah.

To watch their reactions was fantastic. If I would not have had to keep that a secret, I would have told everybody everything.

It had been old news come December, right? Like we knew in April, like nobody is It's not a secret anymore, right?

That's right. It was hard in the beginning when I first got back, and then it became like it had never happened. And then the closer it got to it, the minute I found out that we could tell people, it's like 10:30 at night and I'm asleep by 8:30. So I was laying in bed. I don't even know why I was still awake. Well, I immediately got up. I'm sending emails, I'm putting stuff on social media. It was like a balloon that had been popped.

I love it. So you, did you go out to LA to film or where did you go?

No, we went to Tennessee.

Okay. Yeah.

The Discovery Plus network has a beautiful studio in Tennessee. So for me, I could drive there. So that was really nice.

That's awesome. So you film it all, you know the results again, you can't tell anybody, right? You finally get to tell people. Did you, I mean, let's talk about your time there. How long does the filming session actually take? Because it takes a while to make all this stuff. You, You went 2 rounds. You went both rounds, so you had to make items. Now I was curious when you were making your hot air balloon and stuff. I thought, I wonder how much time she had to like prep her design for this, because on the show it makes it seem like they just tell you, and then you're creating from scratch. Is that the truth, or did you know ahead of time that you had to create both of these? This was your topic, and you had to create the designs, or do you literally learn in that moment?

I knew that I was going to have to create a 3D structure.

Okay.

I did not know what that was going to entail. I knew that I had to create a 3D structure because every Food Network show that I had watched, because I watched every Christmas cookie episode.

Okay.

That's what they had to do. So I was very prepared for that.

So they don't prep you and say, hey, you're going to have a prehistoric Christmas and you get to think of all your ideas. And hey, you're going to make a transportation device in a 3D structure. You don't know that ahead of time.

What you do know is that you have to take your own recipes and that you're going to have to take— that you get 90 minutes to do the first one. People have asked me, they're like, how long? How long did you really get? 90 minutes. Yeah. How long did you really get for the second? 2.5 hours. And you do have to have a lot of knowledge going in, like I have done, because I am artistic and because I have made 3D structures before. And they knew all that because they asked me in the interviews. I knew how to do that. I mean, I knew how to do all that stuff. So it was difficult in the time that I was allotted But it wasn't difficult because I had the knowledge going in. Like, one of the most difficult things, Sarah, is they give you this, this secret ingredient. You have no clue. No clue what it's going to be.

Is that the root beer?

Yes.

Okay.

It could be, it could be, you know, a spice. It could be a fruit. It could be a liquid. You, you have no clue. And when you're making a 3D structure, it matters because, you know, you put liquid in cookie dough and you're going to have a completely soft dough. Well, I made custom lollipops, so I've made— I live in Kentucky, so we make lots of things with bourbon. So I've made bourbon blackberry lollipops. Well, I knew to get that bourbon flavor in the lollipop, you had to reduce down the alcohol. So whenever I found out that it was birch beer, I instantly thought, I can do this. I've done this before. Well, the funny thing was I was a nervous wreck. The second—

it looked like it at all.

Oh, you should have seen it. I had to reduce that down like 4 times. One time I burned it, it was smoking so much I can't— they might have even come over with a fire extinguisher. My cookie was so soft because I put too much of it that the fact that it stood up was a miracle. I mean, I, again, it was a God thing because I could hardly lift it without— I thought for sure that it was going to fall apart. So they do. I mean, all these things are thrown at you that you don't expect. But I went in, you know, my very— my faith is very important to me. And so I thought, okay, I'm going to go on this show. I'm going to be happy. I'm going to be supportive. I'm going to tell people about Jesus. I'm going to have fun and let the chips fall where they may. And I think that, that attitude that I had, which I'm so glad they showed that.

Yeah, they did.

Is what, is what got me through. But yeah, I made a lot of mistakes. Another funny story. You want to hear another funny story?

Yes, please.

I fell in the beginning. You have to run around, you know, they get you situated in your little area. And so we all, you know, we all had these little stations. And the stations are stocked. You know, you have butter, flour, sugar, all the things that you need, but then you have to get ingredients. They have a pantry and then they have a huge area with every art thing that you could ever need. So that's where I got the popsicle sticks and the straws and things like that. Well, they're very spread out. It's a huge studio. So I was running, I was running because you have a limited amount of time and I wiped out. I fell. I didn't just fall a little bit. Like, I literally flew across the room. And one of the cameramen looked at me and he's like, are you okay? And I almost started crying. Then I remembered where I was. I said, I'm fine, I'm fine. Well, I cracked my kneecap. I had a bruise. You should see the pictures of my knee all around my knee. It swelled up all the way down my leg. Skinned up my hand really badly.

Oh my gosh, Lauren.

And then I realized where I was and I thought, okay, I'm not gonna let anybody know. Well, after the first episode you get a break. So they came to get me, the nurse came to get me and she said, are you okay? Do we need to take you to the hospital? And I burst into tears. I mean, I started sobbing. She said, what's wrong? And it hurt. I mean, it hurt, but I think it was all the adrenaline. Yeah. I said, I don't need to go to the hospital. I don't need, cuz I thought, I make it to the second round, I wanna be able to stay.

Yes.

So they put this miracle stuff, sprayed it on my knee and on my hand, and I was good to go. But my knee hurt for 3 months after I came back.

Oh my gosh, Lauren, you would never notice that in the episode. You would never know that you were not, that you were physically hurt at all.

I was, I was really hurt.

I do wanna ask you about one thing, uh, from the episode, and then we're gonna, we'll wrap it up here, but when you had the piñata inside the balloon and you stuffed the cotton candy up in there, and then you tipped it over to put it onto your basket and it all came out. You should have seen us in the watch party. We were like this. Oh no, what is she gonna do? Like, we were freaking out, and you were like, no big deal, I'm gonna change the process. And I thought it was just so telling of not only your, your personality, but just in business, when things don't go the way we had them planned, it doesn't— we don't have a permission slip to give up. We just have to pivot and think of a new option. And you did that so quickly. Like you just turned on a dime and you were like, you know what, that didn't work. Let me do this. And it turned out to be— I think sometimes when this happens to me too, when something doesn't work out in my box and I have to pivot at the last minute and I'm stressed out, something didn't show up, something got lost in the ocean, like whatever the, whatever the case may be, and I pivot and I make something new. I almost think the box was, is better because I, I need a new, better box than I had. And I think that's how it ended up for you too, with your hot air balloon cookie. It just, it, it was just a true testament on when things don't go your way. And now I know the kneecap story, like you're just powering through all the obstacles. That you were dealing with in such a short period of time. You're like, nope, I don't have time for this. Nope, you're not taking me to the hospital. I'm on the Food Network. I'm on the Christmas Cookie Challenge. Nothing's ruining my day here. We're going to make it, right? I love that story. And I love the way you pivoted at the last minute in the last 10th hour of the show. And darn it, I'm real upset that you didn't win. I've just spoiled it for anyone that hasn't watched it yet. But you, you need to go watch this episode. It is called Christmas Then and Now or Christmas Eve and something like that. Yes. You need to go watch it because it is such a great, great episode. But you know, I wanna talk a little bit about what happens after, right?

Mm-hmm.

So this all happened to you. You just told me you've been doing TV interviews and newspaper articles and now you're on the podcast. You're like semi-famous now. And what happens next? Have you seen like a lift in traffic? I know on this show they're, they're not giving a website. They're not telling them where they can go. They don't even feature your cookie cutters. So what happens? Have you found an increase in social media traffic?

I have found— no, I really haven't. But what I have found a big increase in is live classes.

Okay.

Because I mean, it's, it's crazy. The most I've ever had in a class is 19 people. I had a class last week that was 32. I have one next week that's 45, and people keep calling me going, can you just squeeze in one more? I'm like, no, I really can't. I, I foresee an increase in the boxes right now. People that make cookies are completely stressed out, and the thought of getting something else in their home is so overwhelming. So my plan is to hit it hard in January. The box that I have coming out for February, I've already designed. It's adorable. I hired an artist to create the clip art because I just was too busy, and it is so cute. So I'm excited to kind of ramp back up. Then, when cookie makers have time to actually slow down and learn— cookie makers typically take January to learn new skills, so I think my box really can help with that.

Yeah. And I think you're going to also get a little bit more traffic with the TV interviews. And if you have written articles, I would always suggest that you ask them if you can put a link to your site on there. Those backlinks, they kind of live on, especially if it's a digital article, they live on in our internet world and they'll funnel people to you, back to you all the time. I hope that you continue to see a lift in that. And continue to put your story out there because we've done, you know, a lengthy interview today and then you probably don't get that in a, in a live, like a 3-minute live spot. Right. Your story's so powerful and, and once people hear your story, um, I think that you'll get some more media coverage, which will ultimately send people back to your site. Um, so lean into that a little bit. I'm gonna challenge you to share that a little bit more on your social media. Because it's a, it's a great story. And I'm just excited for you. When you think about 2023, where do you go from here? Like you, I mean, you hit the high, right? Like there's no, there's really nothing bigger than the Food Network. Right. So where do you go from here? Where do you see your business going? Where do you see the growth and what's, what's on the, what's the plan for 2023?

I would like to double my subscription box. This time next year. That's my goal for this year. I feel like I can do that if I got to where I am now in a, you know, fairly short amount of time. That's what I would like to do because my other son's going to go to college. So, you know, double the college tuition, double the subscription.

We gotta make double the college fund here. So that's right. I like the math that we're doing. Well, Lauren, if we have listeners that are cookie enthusiasts that would love to follow you and subscribe to your subscription box, where can they find you?

You can find information about my box on cheerfulcutters.com. You can find me sometimes dancing, you know, sometimes decorating cookies on Instagram and Facebook. My Instagram is The Cheerful Baker. Facebook is just Cheerful Baker.

Awesome.

But I'm pretty easy to find.

So yeah, just look for that Food Network symbol.

That's right.

You nailed it, Lauren. Lauren, it was such a great chat catching up with you and, uh, you're always so great to talk to. So thank you for joining me on the podcast and we'll be back next week with another great episode.

Thank you, Sarah.

If the idea of creating a subscription box is swirling around in your head, I encourage you to head over to launchyourboxwithsarah.com, get on our waitlist, and grab some of our free downloads to help you get started. That's launchyourboxwithsarah.com.