Jane Carroll Talks Jane Bakes Cookies
DJ Sixsmith
Bronx native Jane Carroll has a story that everyone can relate to.
The self made entrepreneur has had incredible professional success and also dealt with trying personal circumstances. In the span of 10 months, Carroll's house burned down, she had a heart attack and her booming flower business went belly up because of the recession. These moments not only helped Carroll to change her life, but they also paved the way to her line of Jane Bakes cookies.
"My family lives in this little town Pearl River and I started looking around and I realize there's no coffee houses and the food around here is loaded with bad stuff," said Carroll in an interview with CBS Local. "I wanted to build another business. I played around with a bunch of different foods and I couldn't figure out how to package them cheaply. I love sweets and I started playing around with baking.
Carroll's cookies are slightly based off a French sable cookie and she has some extremely unique flavors. Jane Bakes offer cookie flavors like Vanilla Bean, Amaretto & Oatmeal and Hazelnut & Dark Chocolate. Her cookies are now in stores all over the Tri-State after her humble beginnings.
"We use all natural sugar and 75% less calories and carbs," said Carroll. "People loved the cookies when they tried them in the cafe. I did all the labeling and graphics myself. I started packaging them and then I went to the grocery store and asked them if they would try the cookies. Now we're in 250 stores locally and in a couple Whole Foods in Westchester."
It's a good time to be in the cookie business after Tate's Cookies was sold for nearly $500 million last year. Carroll modeled her business a little bit after Tate's and hopes her business can become the next big thing in the world of cookies.
"I have a really good product and I think it's an inspirational story for women," said Carroll. "Tate's were more natural than other products out there. It was a more locally sourced product. Now it's just about sending out the cookies. We were in the Grammys goody bag and now I'm just sending them out."