Meet Haniya Winkler | Cookie Decorator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Haniya Winkler and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Haniya, what is the most important factor behind your success?
Without a doubt, I believe that the most important factor behind my success thus far is the quality of my product! I have worked really hard to make the best-tasting sugar cookie recipe because I wanted my cookies to not only look good but also taste good. A lot of my clients refer me to their friends because of the high quality of my cookies and it is one of the main reasons I’ve been able to keep a large percentage of my customers!

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
I would love to tell you more! So I started my business in March of 2021. What is interesting is that I fully intended on starting a business based on gourmet bakery cookies rather than custom-decorated cookies. However, a friend of mine asked me to make her some decorated wedding cookies and I decided to give it a shot. Apparently, they were so good that I was told to start my own business by multiple people! So I did it.

Starting a small business was definitely not the easiest task. I am currently a college student and a mom of two little kids, so having to manage all of that was difficult to master at first. Sometimes it still is a hassle, but I would say that I’ve gotten much more organized now so it is a little easier to manage!

What I’m really proud of is how much better my decorating skills have gotten since I started. I spent about three weeks learning how to decorate cookies on YouTube in March, and here I am now in October!

I got where I am today by telling all of my friends and family about my small business in the beginning. Ever since then, the word of mouth has spread quite a bit! Nowadays, I typically post content on Instagram to update my followers on orders to help them stay current. All of my followers and my customers are amazing people so I love to keep up with them on social media.

One of the biggest lessons that I’ve learned along the way is to not overwork myself. It’s okay to take breaks sometimes, even though it can be hard. Burnout makes you dislike your passions, and that is not a position that I allow myself to be in. I encourage all small business owners to take a break sometimes!

What I want the world to recognize about my brand is that custom cookies are a method of connection. I created this business so that I could connect to different people and cultures around the world, and be a part of all of those special memories that everyone has. I absolutely love seeing pictures of my cookies at events such as baby showers or weddings because I know those days are special, and it means so much to me that my cookies are able to be included in those significant memories. I hope these connections continue to grow!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I would say Arlington is a good spot to take them first because Arlington has really good food and places to go to. They have the AT&T Stadium over there as well as Six Flags Over Texas and Hurricane Harbor. There are also a lot of different museums in Dallas such as the Dallas Art Museum and the Perot Museum. Another great place to go is the Fort Worth Zoo and the Dallas World Aquarium too! There are tons of fun places to go to around here.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My family has been the greatest support! I had a large volume of orders one time for a few holidays when I first started, and my husband stayed up until 5am with me to make sure I had everything I needed. He has always been encouraging and he comes up with new ideas for my business all the time!

My mom has her own small business, Queens Skin Care Solutions, where she is an esthetician and gives the best facials. She is amazingly talented. When I told her that I was interested in opening up my own business, she gave me so many different ideas and told all of her clients about me. A lot of my first customers came from her own word of mouth, and I wouldn’t be where I am without her help.

I know my entire family has been proud of my success so far and they have always been my biggest fans!

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