Helping the Homeless With Cookies

One woman found her calling in cookies—and in helping the homeless find their own place in the world.

Trish Karter was a successful Boston artist, living in a big old house that always needed work, when her painter asked for advice. His wife, Suzanne Lombardi, was running a bakery but had to carry pots and pans to rented kitchens throughout the city. Could Karter help her figure out how to make a living doing what she loved?

Karter and her husband thought Lombardi's baked goods were terrific, so they invested $20,000 in the business. Lombardi was able to open her own shop, but soon she was overwhelmed. "Crushed!" says Karter. "So I thought, I'll take a few months off, get some systems in place, and clean up her desk -- she had a foot-and-a-half stack of unprocessed CODs." That was 14 years ago, and Karter has been at Dancing Deer Baking Company ever since.

Everything Karter does, she does full tilt. She left college early to help her father through bankruptcy (he'd developed systems for recycling cans and bottles), worked on the first version of satellite TV, did huge real estate deals in New York, and invented a radio-wave tracking collar to locate lost pets.

Under Karter's leadership -- her title is Chief Deer and Floor Sweeper -- Dancing Deer has won 11 industry awards and built a loyal following for its molasses clove cookies, cherry almond ginger chews, and deep dark gingerbread cake. From the beginning, Karter had demanding ideals -- pure, natural ingredients and a company dedicated to making the world a better place.

That vision was tested early on, when Williams-Sonoma wanted to sell Dancing Deer cookies in its stores. The deal promised to double the bakery's business, but the cookies had to have a six-month shelf life. Karter didn't flinch from making the hard call. "We don't do preservatives," she told company executives. Williams-Sonoma came back: Could the bakery develop a gingerbread mix? Dancing Deer delivered a product they were proud of in four days.

Karter's passion for the business came at a cost, however. Eight years ago, she bought out her husband, whom she divorced, and Lombardi, her business partner. When she came out on the other side, she says, "I had sacrificed so much to keep the company alive -- my kids' soccer games I never got to, the paintings I never finished -- that I was motivated to pull greater meaning out of the company than just economic survival."

Karter was asked by One Family, a group that helps homeless mothers continue their education, to create a house-shaped cookie it could sell to raise money. "So we created a line called Sweet Home and donated 35 percent of the price to One Family. People understood it wasn't just a marketing gimmick."

To date, Dancing Deer has donated more than $200,000 to One Family, which has an amazing track record: Not a single woman who has gone to college has returned to the shelters; ten have bought their own homes.
Having a successful brand isn't enough for Karter. Determined to hit $50 million in sales, with a 10 percent profit margin, she brought in equity investors to accelerate the growth rate by reinvesting profits. (She diluted her own holdings so all employees could be stakeholders.) "Business is hard. It's hard to build and run. The money is the report card."

And Trish Karter -- a relentless optimist and eight-time marathoner -- likes to be at the head of the class. "I always want to do better. Whenever I've had an opportunity and one route was more lucrative, I've always chosen the more interesting, less lucrative one. I've always chosen to chase my dreams."

Q&A With Trish Karter

Why "Dancing Deer"?
The grandmother of the original owner, Suzanne Lombardi, had an antiques store called Dancing Deer. It's about purity, nature, whimsy, fun -- and Dancing Deer is all those things!

What matters most to you in building your business?
I want to land the numbers and claim victory, but it also has to be meaningful to me personally. It has to be for something bigger.

Your dad was an entrepreneur too. Any similarities between the two of you?
In his pursuit of success, for sure. He wasn't the most brilliant businessman, but watching him, I understood the power of being on a mission and being totally devoted to it. I also saw the dangers of being so wrapped up in the mission, you sometimes can't think straight. I see both sides.

Do you have any regrets?
I don't do the regret thing. You make choices every day, and some work out and some don't. You can pull something good out of every mistake. But you don't get to do it again. You just apply the learning going forward.

Is money important to you personally?
No. Happily, I was able to pay for my kids' education. That's all I needed to do. If I were worth a ton of money, I don't know that I'd live much differently.

How do you chill out?
I like to ride my bike fast and for long distances. I love to sail and hike, and recently I took up kiteboarding. I don't do a lot of art anymore.

What advice would you give to a budding entrepreneur?
Follow your heart but keep your feet on the ground. Always keep in mind what you are trying to accomplish: What's your mission? What won't you give up? Find joy in each day's activities. And if you don't find joy in today, maybe you're in the wrong business.

Where does your stamina come from?
I think it's genetic. I am blessed with a basic instinct to hop out of bed, put two feet on the floor, and go at it.