Community Highlights: Meet Juliann Francis of Captain Cookie & the Milk Man

Today we’d like to introduce you to Juliann Francis

Hi Juliann, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Captain Cookie & the Milkman’s origin story stems from my husband Kirk’s obsession with baking and cookies, in particular. He started the business out of an old van that he renovated into a mobile cookie shop back when gourmet food trucks were all the rage in the DC metro area back in 2012. I came on board a few years later in 2015 to help with managing and growing the business and now serve as CEO. We’ve been saving the world one cookie at a time ever since, adding stores and food trucks along the East Coast. We expanded down here to Raleigh, which is my home town, in 2019 and added our second store here last fall. At one point we grew as big as 8 stores, 3 food trucks and an indoor catering division between NYC, DC, VA and NC. Today we have 6 stores, two of which are right here in Raleigh. We still operate the food trucks and catering services in DC, also.

We love what we do: putting a big smile on our customers’ faces by serving up delicious made-from-scratch cookies and best in class local ice cream and milk. In Raleigh, we partner with Homeland Creamery to do this – their stuff is the best quality ice cream you can find. We have to have that to complement the quality of Kirk’s cookie recipes. He is a mad scientist baker and will not rest until a cookie is the best one you’ve ever had – that’s our guarantee. But more than that, we strive to provide a fun experience so that when you c0me in to get a treat you’re leaving feeling your day is better or even that you made a fun memory with the person you came in with, whether that’s a friend, loved one or coworker. Our cookie crew specializes in serving up that joy!

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Starting a business from scratch and building it is not a smooth process – you learn lots of things the hard way. Entrepreneurs know that you’ve got good times and bad times and you have to be okay with that to make a business successful. I think a lot of people try their hand at starting and growing a business and decide it’s not worth it when they hit rocky times. But Kirk loves cookies too much for that and I’m far too stubborn to ever throw in the towel! We are creative problem solvers and I think that’s a big part of why we’ve been able to get to where we are today. I really enjoy learning new things and entrepreneurship is one of those lines of work where you truly are learning something new every day and you can see the positive impact you are making for the efforts you put in.

Hands down the hardest thing we’ve been through in 13 years in business is COVID, and although people think that’s all done and behind us, the truth is there is still an incredible amount of fallout going on from the pandemic, and that will continue for a decade or more. For example, most of our locations are in downtown areas, and those just have not recovered to pre-pandemic levels of foot traffic with so many people switching to working remotely. Everyone wants a vibrant downtown, but there is an ecosystem there with various types of establishments that faltered during COVID and just hasn’t regained health. Beyond that, price increases for pretty much all of our inputs have impacted the business at the same time – we work really hard to deliver a very high quality product at an approachable price, so it can be very tricky to strike the balance, especially with impacts from global crises, US tariffs, and inflation. Those big picture economic things really do impact very small businesses like ours.

Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Captain Cookie & the Milk Man?
Captain Cookie & the Milk Man is known for amazing made-from-scratch cookies and delicious local ice cream. We are “East Coast famous” for our made-to-order ice cream sandwiches, where you pick your two favorite cookies and pair them with a creamy scoop of ice cream. It’s the best. More than that, we try to make the world a better place by creating a really joyful experience. I mean, we are a superhero themed dessert company – we are here to have fun with you!

The quality of our products and our cookie crew’s infectious joy is definitely what sets us apart – we want you to have a brighter day when you get a treat here! We’re obsessed with cookies and use only the best ingredients and process to make them. Unlike some of those well-known chains, our cookies are a reasonable treat. So in addition to treating yourself to something truly delicious, you are getting something wholesome that you can enjoy with no regrets, which really sets us apart from our competitor cookie companies.

We’re proud of all of that. So much love and care for our customers go in to what we do, and we’re proud of that.

Oh, and by the way – we offer awesome catering options that we deliver all over the Triangle. We have cookie cakes, ice cream sandwiches for groups, cookie platters, etc. So for those of you who are back to in-office meetings or have a house party coming up or just want to send a nice gift, maybe it’s someone’s workiversary or birthday, we have fantastic (and affordable) options.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.captaincookienc.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/captaincookienc
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/captaincookienc
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@captaincookie__