Meet Tia Tewari | Student & Entrepreneur

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

Hi Tia, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
I think the most important thing when starting a business venture is being passionate about your work. I have been baking with both friends and family for as long as I can remember. Watching baking shows is something my family bonds over– we enjoy the stressful but creative atmosphere they bring and take inspiration from them. Over this past year, we were constantly recreating baked goods that we saw from the contestants of the Great British Baking Show: reindeer Bakewell tarts, snowman macarons, and various kinds of cakes, to name a few. I want to share this love for baking that my family has with my neighbors and show that baking is not a difficult science– it is quite fun and rewarding!
I believe that the reason we have been able to raise over $500 for Children’s Medical Center is due to the passion I have for baking showing through each jar.

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?
My business is called Cookies for a Cause, a venture that was created in September 2020. We sell DIY cookies in a jar: each jar has the dry ingredients to make 30 cookies, all our customer has to do is mix in butter, vanilla extract, and an egg. This business was inspired by both my love for baking and the lack of opportunities to give back to my community during this time. The contactless aspect of this business sets it apart from bakeries, and I think it is quite representative of this past year. This business has served as a way to help front-line workers during COVID, as well as stay in touch with members of my community by sharing my passion of baking. I donate 100% of the proceeds to Children’s Medical Center Foundation, which is a leading pediatric healthcare facility. I chose to donate to Children’s Medical Center Foundation because I am interested in medicine and hope to work in the pediatrics field one day. In addition to this, I have been involved in research this summer and it has helped shine light on the importance of research to our daily lives. I believe their research is extremely important and can change our community for the better. The donations go towards enhancing comprehensive care, advancing medical research, and overall improving health and wellness across North Texas.
I am very proud of how much this business has grown. I was apprehensive about the response it would get because of COVID and the fact that most of the business is a one person army: I am in charge of marketing, contacting customers regarding orders, and finding ways to promote the business. I built a digital presence for Cookies for a Cause through the website and Instagram page, which customers can use to place orders. Thankfully, I had my mom to help me meticulously make jars. Despite my apprehension and with the help of my friends and family, we have raised over $500 for Children’s Medical Center Foundation.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I love traveling and trying new foods; my family is always on Yelp searching for up and coming restaurants. I live in Plano, and it has such a great variety of cuisines that it is going to be hard to shorten the culinary experience to a week long trip.

My favorite cuisine is Thai, so a great place to start would be Saucy’s Thai & Pho – the mango and sticky rice is a must!
Some more fast food-type options would be Piada Italian Street Food, Cava, and Blaze Pizza, we pick up food from at least one of those restaurants almost every weekend.
Mexican sugar and Mi Dia From Scratch have great Mexican food, and Torchy’s Tacos and Velvet Tacos have some really unique tacos.
Legacy West is a staple Plano location, and I recommend Legacy hall, which is full of nice eateries with artisanal pizzas, ahi tuna towers, and waffles, as well as North Italia and Earls Kitchen.
H Mart is a Korean-American grocery store that has the best snacks and sushi, and Sushi Lovers is my go-to for sushi.
Lastly, my love for boba is nearing an obsession: Kung Fu tea and Sucre Cafe hit the spot.

I also love hiking (good weather permitting) and Cedar Ridge Preserve has about 9 miles of trails. Plano is flat, but there are some inclines on these trails! Some other places for nice scenic walks would be the Arboretum and Arbor hills.
If you don’t mind animals, I think Fossil Rim is always a fun trip, just make sure your windows are up when you pass by the ostriches!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My mom has really helped me bring this business to life– measuring out the ingredients, helping me with pricing, spreading the word to everyone she knows, and coming up with the name ‘Cookies for a Cause’. She actually started making these cookie jars as party favors for me and my sister’s birthday parties, and they were a big hit among our friends. The reason that Cookies for a Cause is not just party favors is because of my friends who pushed me to start this business, so I am very grateful for their words of encouragement.
My love for baking sprouted from shows like the Great British Baking Show (my comfort show), without the fun loving atmosphere the bakers create I would never know the true joys baking can bring.
Also, I want to shoutout everyone who has bought jars and donated, spread the word, and written testimonials– thank you so much for your support! I am very excited to continue to spread my love for baking and help Children’s Medical Center.

Website: https://tiatewari.wixsite.com/cookiesforacause

Instagram: cookies_for.a_cause