It’s safe to say 13-year-old Ella Kurtis has always had entrepreneurial spirit in her veins.
At age four, she tried selling water to family for cash. Two years later she moved onto glitter tattoos and pucker powder sugar sticks that were sold to friends and family. There was even a freeze dried candy venture she created with her uncle at one point in her youth.
By 10, she moved onto dog cookies and then transitioned into sugar cookies.
The now perfected cookies with authentic designs will be sold at the arena this Canada Day under her business title Ella’s Crazy Cookie Company.
“Due to the pandemic, I sold these cookies at booths or at my house, so it is nice to have a return to big Canada Day celebrations and to be able to sell these cookies at places like the arena,” Ella says.
Each cookie is individually packaged, featuring Canada Day themed designs and shapes including Canadiana like hockey sticks, maple leafs, Mounties and fireworks.
The cookie making process isn’t all that quick.
“It’s about a two-day process between making the dough, chilling it, rolling, cooling, icing and packaging,” says Ella.
The work all takes place in the certified kitchen at her parents’ property, which happens to be the headquarters for the Northwest Fudge Factory certified kitchen.
The owners are Ella’s parents, Chantelle Gorham and David Kurtis.
What makes the cookies look professional and pretty is the press machine. It’s very new on the market and works like a Cricut machine to print out masterpieces while hooked up to a computer.
“It’s compact and is about the size of a microwave and it prints my images in five seconds flat,” Ella says.
Ella’s recently designed cookies that will be handed out to her fellow Grade 8 graduates at Bishop Alexander Carter Catholic Secondary School tomorrow.
She has also been busy fulfilling orders this month for educators, bus drivers and end of the school year friends.
Evenings are busy, as she is only able to complete about two dozen orders per day.
Ella’s friends are intrigued by her flair for business and sweets.
“They are always asking me to bring in more for them to taste test!” she said.
While her career aspirations are in law, she knows that this will be a good side business to help her pave the way.
“One day, I could take my machine to university with me, and make them in my spare time for money,” she said.
Ella’s Canada Day themed cookies will be for sale between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. July 1 at the Sudbury Arena at the booth with a giant lemonade.
The cookies are also being sold from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. in Levack that day as well.
Cookies normally cost around $5 each. They are 100 per cent peanut butter free. Learn more on the Ella's Crazy Cookie Company Facebook page.
Anastasia Rioux is a writer in Greater Sudbury. Let’s eat! is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.
