Meet Julia Arriaga | Baker and Cookie artist

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

Hi Julia, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
My thought process was “Making cookies from home easy peasy. Im going to be my own boss” . Wrong!  So much goes behind being a small at home baking business especially being a parent. Time management is everything! It’s also something im not very good at but still make it work. Most of my days are spent with the kids and preping for a long night. Not only am I the baker and decorator im also customer service, im taking orders, im doing inventory, im doing accounting etc. It’s alot for 1 person but i have some help every now and then. What helps get through the stress of it all is the feedback you get from a happy customer. It makes it all worth it.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Im a home based business in East Dallas from a community called Casa View. I Specialize in Custom Royal icing decorated sugar cookies.  I make other desserts also but sugar cookies are my best sellers.  I think what sets me apart from others is the dedication into doing this 24/7. I started off slow and steady and now I can bearly keep up with my orders. Coming up was not easy. At first i had to hunt down for orders. Make post promoting myself on social media and gain the trust of potential clients. Many clients are vendors themselves who post your work on there page and that help with exposure. The power of social media works wonders. A simple share from someone with lots of followers has helped me alot. Lesson that i learned is to be more organized, use my time wisely and I need to put myself more out there with my work. If there was more of me I would take everybodys order but for now if i refer people over to other cookie decorators.

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?
Depends what time of the year it is Deep Ellum is the place to be for girls night. . However i have kids so i need to do kid friendly things also. For food i would go to my favorite burger joint Porkys in Mesquite, they have the best burgers and wing! My all time favorite is the fried pickles though. For fun, Urban air, Dave and Busters, the Aquarium and Zoo. Besides that i dont get out much since im busy with orders all the time.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My family for being so supportive and also helping me with the kids. My aunt who got me the job at Highland Park cafeteria, which is where I started my Cookie journey. And last but not least my friends, business friends and clients for believing in me and trusting me for there special events. Yall are the best!

Instagram: Julies.cookies

Facebook: East Dallas cookies by Julie https://www.facebook.com/julies.cookies95/