Check Out Tammy Hughes’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tammy Hughes.

Hi Tammy, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Off the Beaten Path, DBA Cookiecutter.com was originally going to be a little side business for me to have as a stay at home Mom. Little did we know that it would become a husband/wife adventure that is 28 years now. We started out by advertising in a couple of craft magazines back in 1993. That was strictly mail order then, as the computer age had not yet arrived. My Mother in Law actually helped us find our niche in the cookie-cutter world. She was an entrepreneur herself, owning a country gift shop in Boone, IA. From her experience there, she saw the potential for the beginnings of a cookie-cutter mail order business. We originally purchased miniature cookie cutters from a vendor from out East. Interestingly, fast forward to 2016 and that same vendor called us up one day to see if we would be interested in purchasing their manufacturing company and make their line of cookie cutters ourselves. We took a trip out to Pennsylvania and looked at their operation and decided we wanted to take over their manufacturing business. We had all the necessary business skills and added the manufacturing knowledge on to that. From that day on, we took their line of cookie cutters, many of which we already sold and add on with new and fresh designs each month.

We also continue to sell from another vendor that we have had a business relationship for over eighteen years. Those designs are imported. This allows us to have a very large selection of cookie cutters for your every need.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
For the most part, it has been smooth ride for us. We were fortunate enough to have been able to raise our two kids and be ever-present at all of their games and school events. There are always a few rough patches, especially when you are self-employed and rely on the hard work that needs to be put it for your business to succeed. One of the hardest lessons to learn when self-employed is how to leave the office at the office. When to turn off the emails and customer service when you are no longer at work. Those two pieces of advice is what I always like to share with new business owners. Set yourself up with some boundaries and enjoy the ride.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
We are a cookie-cutter manufacturer/ mail-order company located in Pleasant Valley, MO. We sell both to storefronts and to individuals at home. Our favorite thing is to design a new cookie cutter and bring it to life. Then we get to see our customers make lasting memories with the cookies that they make using our cookie cutter!

We are known for our quick shipping and wonderful customer service.

One thing we are proud of is for being the largest cookie cutter manufacturer west of the Mississippi. We are also proud that we can employ ten other people in our warehouse and make a product right here in the United States.

One thing that sets us apart from other cookie-cutter manufacturers is our ability to manufacture and ship out large orders. We employ what we call a home benders program. In this program, we send out a cookie-cutter pattern to a local team member. They bend the shapes at home and then bring them back for us to spot weld. This allows us to employ even more people and help families earn a little extra money.

What matters most to you? Why?
Two things that matter most to us is our relationship with our employees and to provide a quality product for our customers. If we show respect to our employees, they will feel valued and want to do their best in the manufacturing of the product we sell. Respect goes a long way.

Pricing:

• Our cookie cutters start at $1.85

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: https://cookiecutter.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/otbp_cookiecutters/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cookiecuttercom
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/cookiecuttercom
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq2CBqJH8TUmp8KSgk-EOJg
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@cookiecuttercom?lang=en