Inspiring Conversations with Lauren Dupler of Laurelea’s Sweet Treats

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Dupler. 

Hi Lauren, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
Laurelea’s Sweet Treats is a home-based bakery located in Genoa, Ohio. The name Laurelea’s (lore-uh-lee’s) stems all the way back to the early 90s. My parents owned a bar and grill, and their LLC was named after my sister, Leah, and myself, Lauren, thus leading to the birth of the Laurelea’s name. My mother, sister, and I opened up a cafe & bake shop in 2010 called Laurelea’s Pastries & Cafe, also located in Genoa. We loved making baked goods for our patrons, and my sister was a coffee guru. Our mom passed away in 2012, and we decided to close our doors after only being open a few short years. Our mom was the backbone of our business, and we felt like we couldn’t do it without her. We thought that would be the end of Laurelea’s. 

Fast forward to December of 2017. I was working at a local hospital, and during one of my lunch breaks, I was watching cookie decorating videos on Facebook. I’ve been a baker my entire life, so as I was watching those videos, I told myself that was easy and I could do it. The joke was on me because while I was a great baker, decorating cookies is an entirely different game. I started playing around with cookie decorating, and by March of 2018, I was ready to start taking orders. I delivered my first paid order on April 1st, 2018 and I use that date as my official opening day. 

Over the past 4 years, I’ve built my business from the ground up. While I specialize in custom orders, I also love doing markets and vendor events and attend them all year. I currently stock my cookies frequently at The Flying Joe, a coffee shop located in Levis Commons in Perrysburg, Ohio. 

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
After 9 years in healthcare, I decided to leave my full-time job in December of 2019 to pursue my dream of being a cookie artist. That alone was a terrifying leap of faith, but I knew I had to make it – if I didn’t leave then, I knew I’d make excuses for the rest of my life on why I couldn’t make this a career. 

When I left in December, no one ever could have imagined how the world would be impacted by Covid-19. I certainly wasn’t prepared. Not only that but in January of 2020, my husband and I found out we were expecting our third child. So, a new baby plus a global pandemic hit us face on all at once. In March of 2020, many businesses had to close due to Covid. I had most of my orders cancel that month. It was scary trying to figure out how to navigate the pandemic. I was fortunate that after a few weeks, my business was able to pick back up. I changed a few things in my business, offered different items, changed pricing, and offered contactless pickup. All of 2020 left me without markets and vendor events, which were huge money-makers for me. But after re-evaluating, I was able to push through and keep our business afloat. 

We’ve been impressed with Laurelea’s Sweet Treats, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I make custom-decorated artisan cookies. Most people see decorated cookies and say, “oh those are pretty, but how do they taste?!” And I LOVE that I offer a unique cookie flavor. I make salted caramel butter cookies with a caramel royal icing. I have a big personality, and I felt like my cookies needed to reflect that. So, I gave them a personality with flavor. I create miniature works of art for my clients, and I love being part of their special events. 

On top of my custom-decorated cookies, I make cookie bombs. Cookie bombs are drop cookies with a twist. They are large scooped cookies in fun flavors. My most popular sellers are Not Your Grandma’s Chocolate Chip Cookies, Red Velvet, and Triple Chocolate Peanut Butter. 

Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
I started out by watching a lot of YouTube videos. Most of what I learned was through watching countless hours and practicing what I just watched. Once I discovered Instagram, I started watching videos from cookiers and learning that way, too. I actually never took any in-person classes until I went to the 2019 CookieCon in Reno, NV. I’ve now taken classes by Timbo Sullivan from CakesByTimbo, Angela Niño from the Painted Box, Liz Adams with Arty McGoo, Aime Pope from the Painted Pastry, and Andrea Walters from AndyKay’s Cookies, just to name a few. Each class I’ve taken has been with a purpose and to advance on a skill I wanted to perfect. But the best advice I can give for those wanting to learn how to decorate cookies is practice, practice, practice! You’ll never get better if you don’t work on your skills. 

Pricing:

• Custom decorated cookies start at $60 per dozen, with a 2 dozen minimum. Prices are subject to change based on designs desired and as supply materials increase.
• Cookie bombs start at $30 per dozen with a 1 dozen minimum order. Prices are subject to change based on flavor and supply cost.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.laureleas-sweets.com
• Instagram: Instagram.com/laureleas_sweets
• Facebook: Facebook.com/laureleas