The Columbia Daily Tribune:
Corey Rimmel turned 21 last Sunday.
Instead of visiting local watering holes with his buddies for a celebratory first legal drink, Corey enjoyed milk and cookies at his newly opened business, Hot Box Cookies.
Corey and co-owners Adam Hendin and David Melnick have barely had a moment to celebrate anything recently. Hot Box Cookies, about to enter its second month, has kept them and their 26 employees hopping from the moment the first batch of homemade customized delicacies came out of the oven.
“We haven’t even really advertised,” Corey says. “This is all word-of-mouth, a little bit of door mail, helping out with a couple of tailgating events and having a prime location on Broadway. We haven’t had time to work our way through our marketing plan – we’ve just been too busy.”
No doubt. Corey, Adam and David are juniors at MU. While Corey and David major in accounting, Adam is considering atmospheric science. The three best friends grew up together in Chesterfield, attended Parkway Central High School and came to MU to have the typical college experience.
Many months ago, Corey visited the University of Indiana and saw a cookie bakery and delivery business near the campus. He thought the concept was rather novel, and in conversation with his friends a few days later, he mentioned the idea.
“At first we were just joking, kicking the idea around,” Corey says. “Before long, we were holed up in the library every night doing research. Then, one day, we said, ‘Well, let’s just see if we can do it.’ ”
Hot Box Cookies is one-of-a-kind – as is every cookie they bake.
Starting with homemade dough in four flavors, bakers add whatever you like to make your cookies specifically to your taste. You order in increments of six, and you can pick them up or have them delivered within minutes of their emerging from the oven.
Packaged in a small pizza box, the cookies arrive at your doorstep while they are still warm. An order of six customized cookies is $5.95 plus a $1 delivery fee.
Or you can walk in off Broadway and select them fresh from the case in the store. Sit at one of the tables, play a board game, use the free Wi-Fi and enjoy a cold glass of milk or one of Corey’s signature smoothies or shakes. What else could you possibly need after a hard day of work or school?
Photo by Hot Box Cookies LLC.