Today we’d like to introduce you to Peder McOmber.
Hi Peder; we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, let’s briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
I began my entrepreneurship journey in door-to-door sales (you know, one of those annoying guys who starts with a bad joke). During the summers while I was in college, I would venture out to a new city and sell home security systems. When I graduated school, I worked as a big box retail company manager. I hated it. I lasted 4 months. I quit and returned to door-to-door sales that summer, selling residential solar. I loved it. I loved the company I was with; it was a great fit. What started as a temporary thing to get me through a few months of job hunting has become a career I am proud of. The solar industry kept growing, as did my responsibility, but it also brought so much autonomy, growth, and development. I still work in the industry, and in my time, I’ve opened 3 sales offices and overseen the company-wide training and development for over 300 sales reps. Door-to-door sales is a misunderstood industry. I love it, but it is a grind. It provides so much experience, and the stories are second to none.
Starting my career in solar taught me many lessons and gave me experience to lead and train organizations as I ran my own business within the company with the sales offices I managed. Opening Cookie Co is my first venture into something completely solo. I had the perfect training ground with my work history, though. The challenges and rejection you face in sales make you develop grit and thick skin. It creates this attitude that when things don’t go your way, you buckle down to figure out how to work through the obstacle rather than throwing in the towel. I knew that autonomy and growth were what I wanted in my work life, and this career provided more opportunities for me to go into business. Franchising has been something I have looked into for quite some time. Cookie Co came into my view immediately as I looked for the next venture. In door-to-door, I worked with the people of the community all day, every day, and this provided me the chance to provide differently and be close to the community we work in.
Opening up a franchise hasn’t been easy, but nothing worthwhile is supposed to be easy. I was seeking more growth and a chance to prove what I could do when I was behind everything. Cookie Co Cedar Park has been an 18-month process. I have learned every step to improve and am excited to provide amazing, delicious gourmet cookies to the North Austin area. Entrepreneurship isn’t for everyone, but it has been life-changing and purposeful for me. There is this euphoria when things start moving, and you realize that you and the team you put together created something from virtually nothing, and Cookie Co is just that for me. It helps to have someone in your corner, and my wife is an amazing support in all of my endeavors and always believes in me and my abilities, even in moments of doubt.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned? Looking back, has it been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Was this a smooth road? Haha! Not! I won’t go through all the little things, but those did compound and add up, but the obstacles were there, and lessons were learned. This was an 18-month journey. Things started out moving fairly smoothly. We identified a great location for business fairly quickly and got the ball rolling, and the lease was negotiated to factor in free rent for a few months to give us the time to open our doors. From there, the class was in session, and the lessons were learned as a first-time franchiser.
Since my career has been spent working on solar construction projects, I knew permitting could be difficult, but I was still determining what we would get. You can only ask so many questions to try and identify what to prepare for before you go for it. Our location falls within the city limits for Austin, so we knew we would have some challenges with permitting since we were taking over existing space that was not used as a food establishment before and would need a change of use occupancy permits, etc. The permits took 7 months before we could begin the build, which led us to figure out how to renegotiate our lease so we weren’t hemorrhaging money each month.
Of course, there were obstacles in construction. We were navigating delays and last-minute adjustments. Figuring out how to communicate what needed to be done and hold the line of accountability was an important skill. We had to change some specs for our ovens to fit the city’s requirements and also add a second rooftop HVAC system, neither of which were expected costs at the start. These issues sound insignificant when I put them down in words like this. Still, many of the delays or alterations to the job created significant obstacles at the time and created logistic nightmares. We had a great contractor, though, which made a huge difference. At the end of it, though, all of this builds your resolve and makes you better and stronger when you make it out the other end.
Thanks for sharing that. Can you tell us more about your business next?
Cookie Co gourmet cookies made locally! We use fresh, real ingredients and make everything in-house. These are big, decadent, delicious cookies with amazing variety. Our menu changes each week. There are 80-plus cookies we can make, so you never get bored, and each week, my mouth waters when we announce that week’s lineup. We also have a unique catering offer, which is cookie pies. For me, the draw to Cookie Co was the quality and taste. Not just the deliciousness factor but that we only use real butter, eggs, etc. No syrups or artificial, and everything is made fresh daily in the house. I love my sweets, but other options would leave me feeling sick after a few bites or major headaches, and I have never experienced that with a Cookie Co item. We don’t get dough shipped to us; that is where the difference comes from. Plus, our recipes are just out of this world; there is a cookie for everyone. I also appreciate that we can offer on a small and large scale. So whether you want just a single treat for yourself or are looking for a large order for a corporate event, we can make your cookie dreams come true. We work with several businesses to provide cookies weekly for customers or staff and do one-off catering events. We have worked with HOAs, realtors/sales teams, small businesses, schools, car dealerships, etc. Our people are great, our cookies are amazing, and we try to bring a great atmosphere to everyone. We love being a part of the community and look forward to building more relationships with those we work with. Give us a try.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
I grew up outside with the sun and not back home until after dark. I played any sport I could. I was a pretty good athlete and played golf in college. Golf is still a major part of my life. I have two brothers and two sisters. My brothers are quite a bit older than me, and I was also chasing them, trying to catch up to the level they were at and wanting to impress them. My family is entirely of musicians, and I grew up playing the piano; I now compose my songs and still play almost daily. Other than music and sports, I was a pretty outgoing kid. I was fortunate to have a great group of friends, and we had a lot of fun. Humor has always been a part of my life. Laughing every day is important, and as a kid, I was always laughing and cracking jokes and was very sarcastic. I was a good kid; I was taught to be nice to everyone and include everyone in whatever I do. Throughout my life, even at a young age, I found myself in leadership roles, whether on sports teams or at my church or something else, but I never shied away from helping and leading others, and it is one thing I have always loved doing. I was not telling someone what to do but helping to unite for a purpose.
Contact Info:
- Website: cookieco.com
- Instagram: @pedermco24, @cookieco_cedarpark
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pedermcomber/
