PRINCETON - Karen Heeter said she has never been in the baking business before.
But the cookies she made and distributed throughout the community and the ensuing popularity could indicate differently.
Heeter and her husband, Bill, moved to the Princeton area from New York approximately five years ago. It was a drastic change for the couple. But among the things they brought with them were family recipes, which, when mixed with a desire to start a cookie business, resulted in Clover Dew Cookie Creations, which is based out of their home on Clover Dew Dairy Road.
The Heeters originally are from Pennsylvania and lived in New York for 15 years. She transferred to West Virginia with her job at a large company, where she handled accounting responsibilities for eight corporations.
West Virginia obviously was a rural transition, but she admits she likes it here "because it is simple and quiet."
Heeter's husband followed her to West Virginia six months later.
"I finally found this house after looking at numerous houses," she said. "So it was a little scary living here by myself, not knowing anyone. And it was in the winter."
Her initial fear of the move would soon be replaced, however, with a deep desire to pursue something she loved. Not only could Heeter enjoy a more rural lifestyle living in the country, she could fill her free time with baking family recipes and promoting her product while getting to know people throughout her community.
"You work so hard," she said. "But you pour your own talents into your own success."
The Heeters began researching the cookie business by purchasing cookies "from everywhere," she said. Most of the cookies they purchased were through the Internet.
Just about every cookie they tasted did not meet their standards of what a good cookie should be. So, they started their business in 2008.
"So that's where it all started," said Heeter, smiling. "I bake at night, and I bake on weekends. I'm the baker; he (does) the packaging.
"Sometimes he helps with scooping," she added, looking at her husband. "We're very supportive of each other. We look at each other and say, 'Okay, how many are we going to cook tonight?' And he helps with the marketing end."
When it came to starting her business from scratch, Heeter said she did not encounter many challenges.
"That wasn't hard for me," she said. "I did everything online - setting up with the West Virginia Department of Health and the Department of Agriculture. All labels had to be approved. I did all of it basically, online, to be honest with you."
Once the paperwork was in place, she simply did what she does best: bake cookies.
The couple transformed the upper-level of their new home to a kitchen where they have spent many late hours mixing ingredients, stirring and baking cookies, as well as packaging them.
"My recipes mostly come from family," Heeter continued, noting that the recipe for her most popular cookie - Grammy's Ginger Molasses - comes from her mother-in-law.
Her cookies contain no preservatives or additives.
Currently, she bakes seven types of cookies but adds three additional recipes to her selection during the holidays.
Baker's choice, snickerdoodle, chocolate chip, ginger molasses, oatmeal raisin, peanut butter and white chocolate macadamia nut are her staple cookies.
She said the additional three recipes include a double-fudge chocolate nut cookie, a lemon cashew shortbread cookie and a chocolate toffee cookie.
"The lemon cashew is a very delicate cookie and doesn't ship," Heeter explained. "The double fudge will not ship during the summer because it is full of chocolate."
Acknowledging that she had never before been in the baking or cooking business, Heeter said she was "overwhelmed" by business her first Christmas. Her second Christmas was much better, and this past Christmas she received more than 400 dozen orders.
The majority of her Christmas business this year was through corporations who purchased cookies as gifts for clients.
Locally, she added, their cookie business is "going very well."
"That's who supports us - more than the Internet," she said.
News of her growing business has spread simply through "word-of-mouth," she said.
The company also advertises through radio giveaways as well as offering free samples during functions such as county fairs, festivals and expos.
Valentine's Day and Mother's Day are additionally busy times for the entrepreneur.
"I take a challenge," she said. "To me it is like an adventure. Some way or another I'll figure it out."
Heeter said she was scheduled to appear on CBS's Rachael Ray show last fall, but producers canceled all segments of "Snack of the Day."
"When people try our cookies, they are quiet; they just savor the taste."
Information on Clover Dew Cookie Creations can be found at www.cloverdewcookies.com.
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