Her Story
About Cristy
I started Christie's Delightful Desserts 5 years ago in February 2020, right during COVID. I was a chef before I was a baker, but when the stores were closed down during the pandemic, my adult son who is a huge cookie monster couldn't get any cookies. So I took whatever I had in the house and saw another chef slash baker on TV making cookies, and I thought, okay well I can do that. My son fell in love with them, so I started gifting them to the neighbors as we were all joined together during COVID, being neighborly and helping everybody. Everyone encouraged me saying 'oh my gosh, you gotta sell these,' so my daughter came to visit during that time and started an Instagram for me, and it just started to take off from that. The name came about because I was best friends with my mother-in-law, and anytime I would bake or cook something, she would say 'oh, that's delightful,' so I used my name and called it Christy's Delightful Desserts because I love my mother-in-law so much. My son, who is very involved in the motorcycle community, was at an event for a well-known female rider and asked her how to get me into being a vendor. She followed my Instagram and invited me to be the dessert vendor at one of her private parties at California Harley-Davidson. The events coordinator there was so impressed that she invited me to enter a baking contest, and I took first place and became the California Harley-Davidson Cookie Queen. That gave me the confidence to enter the Greatest Baker contest hosted by Buddy Valastro, and while I didn't win first place, I came in 8th in the nation. Now I work with and vendor at quite a few Harley-Davidson dealerships in Orange County, San Bernardino County, and LA County. I'm most known for my cookies, but I bake everything. Recently, I started a line of gluten-free, sugar-free, no refined sugar bakes. I was diagnosed with carcinoma cancer back in November 7th of 2024, and I still loved my sweets but could no longer have any sugar or carbs. God took that tragic news into a blessing and turned my baking into something that is good for everybody, not just myself, but if you have diabetes or just want a healthier lifestyle. I do protein cookies that are sugar-free, gluten-free, all kinds of different things. I'm a self-taught baker and didn't go to any fancy school. My baking has always kind of spoke for itself.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Cristy
01What do you attribute your success to?
I gotta say, it's the Holy Spirit, God-led. My faith has guided me through everything. I always like to give it to God and say it's my gift from God, my talent. God took the tragic news of my cancer diagnosis into a blessing and turned my baking into something that is good for everybody. I put God first, and my family, and I feel like the rest will follow. When I was worried about not having enough followers or not doing as well as somebody else, I had to stop looking at what somebody else is doing and just worry about what God has me doing. I figured out that God has enough people in the world that there's plenty of taste buds for everybody.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say first, believe in yourself. You gotta have thick skin, because there's a lot of critics out there, and a lot of people that say no. There were many times where I thought, especially the first couple years where it was just, you know, you get a little bit here and a little bit there, and the baking business is very competitive. There's always going to be someone that's better than you, that you think has more talent than you, but I figured out that God has enough people in the world that there's plenty of taste buds for everybody. Just remember that, keep trying, perseverance always pays off, and consistency is key to everything. It's not always about how many followers you have, but the quality of what you have. I'm kind of a shy person, so baking is, my baking has always kind of spoke for itself, and it took a lot of courage for me to even say, hi, would you like to try a free sample? But you have to push through that.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The baking business is very competitive. For the longest time, I always worried about, oh, I don't have enough followers, or I'm not doing as well as somebody else's, and I had to stop looking at what somebody else is doing, and just worry about what God has me doing. You can get caught up with somebody has more followers, and I did think, I must be doing something wrong, or all those thoughts run through your head. I just have a little over 500 followers, and I'd think, gosh, what am I doing wrong? And then I would look at the followers that I would have, and I would go, oh wow, well, this person has celebrity status, and this person has celebrity status, so it's not always about how many you have, but the quality of what you have.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I always want to do my best for my customers, or even the person that's just coming up to try one sample, to give me that chance. It's always important to me to give 100% and to use the very best quality ingredients, never try to cut corners and use a lesser quality, because I care about what people are putting into their body. For my family, I mean, they've always been my biggest supporter. My family has always come first. Well, I have to honestly say God first, and my family, and I feel like the rest will follow. Courage is also important to me. I'm kind of a shy person, so it took a lot of courage for me to even say, hi, would you like to try a free sample? at my first event.
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