You probably haven’t heard of her, but you may have eaten her cookies. Michele Lee has been making cookies for hotels in Seoul since 2000. After working in hotel management for years, Michele took a break and took to her hobby, baking.
Green tea shortbreadShe started off with mixes and eventually made her cookies from scratch. 5 years of experimenting and a baking certification led to her creating Michele Cookies (michelecookie.com). She used her old contacts in the industry to develop relationships with hotels in the city and has established her niche in the baking world here in Seoul.
Since she opened her business, the cake and pastry world has exploded. But cookies are still considered, from her perspective, to be kids desserts in Korea. She always looking for inspiration and ways to innovate, while at the same time delivering on traditional, authentic, Western flavors. Growing her business would be nice, she says, but she gets the most thrill when a business tells her how much they enjoy her cookies.
A coconut cookie, fresh out of the oven.