Pepperdine just got a little sweeter. Waves Bakes, an on-campus cookie baking and delivery business, made its debut Oct. 30.
First-year students Taylor Karr and Lily Wilson bake homemade cookies on Thursdays and Fridays and have them delivered on the weekends to students living on campus. ZippieCookie, a similar business Alumni Noah Wossen (17) and Briana Rusin (17) created nine years ago, inspired Waves Bakes, according to Dr. Susan Helm, a Pepperdine nutrition professor.
Waves Bakes works to bring students joy through baked goods made from scratch that people cannot get anywhere else on campus, Karr said. She hopes Waves Bakes’ products remind people of home.
“We just really want to have a business where people can really enjoy something that’s maybe a little nostalgic or just actually brings them some comfort and joy,” Karr said.
Wilson has always loved baking and cooking, she said, and often bakes treats to give away as gifts.
“I’m always in the kitchen cooking dinner for my family or baking something for my mom to give to our friends,” Wilson said. “I want to continue that here.”
Waves Bakes offers four traditional flavors and two allergen-friendly options. Wilson said she is gluten-free herself and wanted to offer a variety of cookies for those with dietary restrictions.
For the most part, the recipes are original, Karr said. Wilson and Karr have gathered inspiration from the internet and their families and made small modifications.
“We’ve done some different recipe testing,” Karr said. “The best ones have been kind of the ones we’ve used from our families or ones we’ve used in the past.”
Karr and Wilson said they have learned about the importance of whole ingredients through their nutrition classes. The cookies are made with simple ingredients and are healthier than store-bought alternatives, Wilson said.
“If you buy a cookie at Starbucks, it is filled with a bunch of preservatives,” Wilson said. “We just wanted to use whole ingredients that are healthier than processed foods.”
Wilson and Karr’s friends from their nutrition classes deliver the cookies on Saturday and Sunday. Wilson said some men from their class offered to help them with their deliveries before Wilson or Karr reached out to ask. Wilson and Karr pay them for their deliveries.
First-year Luke Bell said he liked Wilson and Karr’s business idea, so he and a friend decided to get involved.
“Both me and my friend Sean, who are also in the nutrition classes with them [Wilson and Karr], heard about what they’re doing and thought it was cool, so we wanted to help out,” Bell said.
Business has been slow in the first few weeks, but the reviews so far are positive, Wilson and Karr said.
“Everyone has loved them [the cookies],” Karr said.
Waves Bakes customer Caroline Crump said she is glad students can have homemade cookies delivered on campus.
“Me and my mom used to make cookies together,” Crump said. “Their cookies are really good and remind me of home.”
On the business end, Wilson and Karr are both entrepreneurship minors and hope Waves Bakes can flourish as a student-owned business.
“Personally, I’ve always wanted to own my own business,” Karr said. “Our goal is for this to be a successful business that we own.”
Wilson and Karr are trying to be more aggressive with marketing. They have posted to Instagram, and they tabled at Stick or Treat with SWAB, Wilson said.
“We are going to need to hang up posters and get more people to follow our Instagram,” Wilson said.
Wilson and Karr said Helm has been the backbone of the business. She has provided support through funding and student access to the Nutritional Science Department’s kitchens, Karr said.
“The whole Nutrition Division and Pepperdine in general has been really supportive,” Karr said. “But I would say Dr. Helm is really who got us started.”
What Wilson and Karr have already created is an incredible endeavor for first-year students, Helm said.
“The initiative and creativity that Taylor and Lily are demonstrating are spectacular, and I plan to support them as long as they want to maintain Waves Bakes,” Helm said.
Orders are open Monday through Friday. Deliveries are on Saturdays and Sundays. Students can direct message the Waves Bakes Instagram account to place orders.
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Email Ava Heinert: ava.heinert@pepperdine.edu
