Podcast Summary: Baking it Down with Sugar Cookie Marketing 🍪

Episode 231 — "Intro to the 2025 Vendy Blendy"

Hosts: Heather and Corrie Miracle
Date: September 30, 2025

Episode Overview

In this lively and information-packed episode, Heather and Corrie offer a comprehensive introduction to the 2025 Vendy Blendy, an annual one-day sale event for bakers, hosted in a dedicated Facebook group. The episode covers what the Vendy Blendy is, who it's for, how it works, notable vendors, marketing strategies, and tips for both participants and potential vendor shops. Interwoven with their trademark humor and banter, the sisters delve into the event’s logistics, share behind-the-scenes insights, discuss strategies for bakers, and answer listener questions.

Main Themes & Purpose

• Explain the Vendy Blendy event—what it is, how it works, and why it exists.
• Announce the opening of promotion for the 2025 event (Black Friday, November 28).
• Share marketing tips for bakers and vendors.
• Showcase confirmed vendors and what they’re offering this year.
• Answer listener questions on diverse business and baking topics.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. What is the Vendy Blendy? [10:00–16:30]

• Vendy Blendy Overview:

  • A 24-hour online Black Friday sale, exclusively for bakers, organized in a dedicated Facebook group.
  • Participating vendors (baking-centric shops) offer at least 25% off or more on products for one day.
  • The experience is intentionally chaotic and high-energy (“organized chaos”) – designed to mimic the thrill of offline Black Friday shopping.

• How it works:

  • Begins at midnight Eastern Time on Black Friday (Nov 28, 2025).
  • Shoppers request to join the Vendy Blendy Facebook group (remain "pendy" until midnight when they're let in as "spendy").
  • Vendors post sales, giveaways, and door prizes throughout the day.
  • After 24 hours, everyone is removed and the group is reset for the next year.

• Purpose:

  • “A shopping day for bakers.”
  • Consolidates massive discounts and resources in one spot.
  • Drives energy and excitement, and supports small baking businesses.

Quote:
"It is designed to be absolute organized chaos." – Heather [10:54]

2. Event Logistics: Who, What, When, Where, Why [16:30–36:00]

• Who is it for?

  • All bakers, but especially those focused on sugar cookies.
  • New and experienced bakers can benefit—stock up on supplies, try new vendors, get business tools.
  • Husbands/wives/family can join to shop or enter door prizes.

• What’s included?

  • Discounts on baking tools, cutters, stencils, mats, courses, ingredients, packaging, software, and more.
  • Vendors offer at least 25% off (some more), and must provide a door prize/giveaway.
  • Big event-wide door prizes (ex: Bosch mixers, 3D printers) funded by vendor fees.

• Why is it a separate group?

  • To keep normal group feeds from being swamped by hundreds of posts.
  • “Double opt-in” increases engagement and proves to vendors that participants are highly interested buyers.

• Timing & Participation:

  • Request to join now; let in at midnight Eastern on Nov 27.
  • All door prizes open to everyone in the group, no purchase necessary.
  • Active participation recommended for best experience (and more prizes!).

Quote:
"It's a vibe. It's five. ... A shopping day for bakers." – Corrie [18:10]_

3. Marketing Strategy & Lessons for Bakers [36:00–43:00]

• Multi-Channel Marketing:

  • Emphasizes the challenges of algorithm-driven social media and the benefits of diversified communication (emails, FB Lives, podcasts, TikTok).
  • Suggests bakers use similar strategies—don’t put all marketing eggs in one basket.

• Organization & User Experience:

  • All sales, codes, and vendors are managed in a detailed spreadsheet for easy shopping.
  • Group activity is strictly vendor/host posts only; dedicated threads for questions.

Quote:
"People imbibe information in different ways. When your marketing is sole complete slave to algorithms, you're fighting a big battle." – Heather [7:24]_

4. Vendor List & Notable Deals [1:03:00–1:26:00]

• Confirmed Vendors (so far):

  • Returnees such as The Cookie College, One Smart Cookies, Brighton Cutters, Baking Beavers, Delta Sprinkles, Boujee Baker, Sweet Pink Olive, Bakeity Bake, Chewa Cookie, and many more.
  • Vendor deals include: cookie class kits, custom cutters, baking software, flavorings, packaging, molds, and ingredients.
  • Some vendors offer more than the minimum (e.g., 30%+ discounts, gift with purchase).
  • Special cases (e.g., Eugene’s dough sheeters offer 10% due to cost constraints).

• Door Prizes:

  • Nearly all vendors offer a door prize (announced at 10:00pm EST).
  • Event-wide prizes increase as more vendors sign up.

• Event Growth:

  • Yearly growth from 20 vendors (first year) to 83 (last year) and a goal to surpass 8,000 spenders this year.
  • New vendor applications open soon (after previous vendors onboarded).

Quote:
"It just became even more chaotic. And I was like, wow, this is the vibe." – Corrie on vendor participation [1:20:08]_

5. Facebook Lives & Education Leading to Event [1:27:30–1:32:00]

• Scheduled Lives:

  • October 23: Vendy Blendy 101 & Visual Walkthrough
  • October 30: Pre-shopping the Vendor List
  • November 6: Secrets to Shopping the Vendy Blendy
  • November 13: Cookie College Focused Live
  • November 20: Final Q&A, Prep Week

• All FB Lives will be cross-posted to YouTube (as FB deletes old Lives after 30 days).

6. Listener Q&A: Business Balance, Event Questions, and More [1:43:00+]

• How to balance bakery, day job, and group involvement:

  • “You have a lot of throttles or what you call spigots. ... as one starts pouring out more, one also must be turned down." — Corrie [1:44:20]
  • Advice: Be realistic, set boundaries, and recognize that personal circumstances shape what success looks like.

• Moving websites & SEO:

  • Changing website platforms (even if the domain is the same) can cause a temporary Google ranking dip due to structural changes.
  • Ensure analytics and Webmaster tools are set up; resubmit the new site to Google.

• Cookie class at a dog rescue:

  • Practical tips for sanitation (air purifiers, heat-sealing cookies, lint rollers), plus embracing the “dog owner” vibe in event description.
  • “As dog owners, we know hair is absolutely everywhere.” – Corrie [1:41:12]

7. Fun & Community: “Twintrusts” and Personal Updates [1:58:00+]

• Sisterly banter: Holiday perfumes, magnesium sleep sprays, and quirky life choices.
• Community reminders (sign up for Vendy Blendy!), event stats, pet loss, and customer service stories.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It is designed to be absolute organized chaos.” – Heather [10:54]
• “It's a vibe. It's five. ... A shopping day for bakers.” – Corrie [18:10]
• “People imbibe information in different ways. When your marketing is sole complete slave to algorithms, you're fighting a big battle.” – Heather [7:24]
• “Let us talk about it again for another whole year. It's so overwhelming that the day after you absolutely can't talk about. We'll get that in just a second.” – Heather [49:13]

Important Timestamps

• 00:00–02:00: Quick disclaimer—Corrie’s mic is spotty today!
• 06:00–10:00: The why behind marketing in different formats (FB, podcast, email, etc.)
• 10:54: Vendy Blendy logistics—“absolute organized chaos.”
• 16:17–18:13: Who, what, where, when, and why of the event.
• 21:00–30:00: Vendors, pendy to spendy process, how to join group, “double opt-in” concept.
• 38:00–54:00: Vendor types, door prizes, event history, and strict focus on bakery-related vendors.
• 1:03:00–1:23:00: Listing and shoutouts to confirmed vendors, detail on their deals.
• 1:27:30–1:32:00: Upcoming Facebook Lives and event prep.
• 1:43:00–end: Listener Q&A, business advice, SEO migration, cookie classes at dog venues, personal anecdotes.

Resources Mentioned

• Vendy Blendy Info & Sign Up: sugarcookiemarketing.com/vendiblendy
• Facebook Group Search: “Vendy Blendy (Sugar Cookie Marketing)” or facebook.com/groups/vendiblendy
• The Cookie College: Courses for bakers on marketing & business growth.
• Cookie Design Lab: Cookie cutter design software (deal: “twins” for 15% off, 25% off on Vendy Blendy day).

Marketing & Participation Action Steps

• Bakers:

  • Request to join the Vendy Blendy FB group; pend until Nov 27 midnight.
  • Prepare for 24 hours of sales and community chaos.
  • Shop, learn, enter door prizes, and enjoy the event culture.

• Vendors:

  • Apply to participate (returning vendors first, new ones soon).
  • Plan your sales/door prizes and prep your posts.
  • Engage actively on event day for maximum return.

Final Thoughts

This episode is both a primer and pep talk for Vendy Blendy 2025 and a master class in event marketing for bakers. Heather and Corrie’s relatable banter, detailed breakdowns, and transparent approach demystify both the event and the broader strategies bakers can use to grow their businesses (and make their baking life more fun). Whether you’re a seasoned “spendy” or a complete “pendy” newbie, there’s insight, encouragement, and lots of laughs to be had.

For more, tune in next week or join the Facebook group and the Vendy Blendy event for ongoing updates and community support!