Home Culture From South Africa to Hoboken, This Hoboken Resident Is Sharing Her Cookies With the Community

From South Africa to Hoboken, This Hoboken Resident Is Sharing Her Cookies With the Community

by Via Rutkowski
Via Rutkowski
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Delicious cookies and a good heart are the two driving factors behind the local cookie business For Cup Sakes, located in a sunny studio at 720 Monroe Street in Hoboken. Whether it’s due to a flare of nostalgia, or just the joy of treating yourself, there’s no denying that baked goods spark a sense of joy for many of us. Caroline Henderson, the founder of For Cup Sakes, has witnessed that firsthand as she ignites a custom cookie craze that locals can’t seem to get enough of. Read on to learn more about For Cup Sakes in Hoboken and Caroline’s inspiring story.

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How It Started

Hoboken resident, single mother of two, and entrepreneur Caroline Henderson moved from Johannesburg, South Africa, to Hoboken nearly ten years ago with her two children. She absolutely loves calling the Mile Square city home. Caroline candidly shared with The Hoboken Girl, “We came to Hoboken so my kids could have a better life. They wouldn’t have thrived as much as they would here.” She expressed gratitude for the opportunities and sense of community here in Hoboken. After all, the fusion of community and opportunity echoes how Caroline’s business For Cup Sakes began in the first place.

for cup sakes hoboken

Caroline always wanted to own her own business, though to her surprise she never thought it would be in the food industry. Caroline is a natural-born creative and even studied Fine Art and Illustration at the University of Natal in South Africa. Throughout the years, Caroline worked full-time in HR and believe it or not had zero background in baking (though she was always doing creative projects on the side). Caroline shared with HG that the only baking “experience” she had was making cupcakes at home with her daughter. While this may sound like a simple and rather normal activity, little did Caroline know that this act of baking with her children would soon lead to something much more.

Read More: A List of Women-Owned Hoboken + Jersey City Businesses

Before moving to Hoboken, Caroline and her daughter would bake and donate cupcakes to local shelters in Johannesburg. This became a common practice for them. Over time Caroline and her daughter began to bond with the community over their delicious baked goods. As one could imagine, the sweet treats certainly spread a lot of joy. Cupcake deliveries began to increase around town and Caroline was able to donate and brighten the days of many.

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for cup sakes hoboken

Photo Credit: For Cup Sakes

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In 2015 when Caroline and her family moved to Hoboken, she hoped to continue this feel-good tradition. Unfortunately, she began to hit some roadblocks, realizing that it was much more difficult to donate food in the U.S. due to strict serve-safe rules and restrictions. But of course, this did not stop Caroline’s good heart and she still found a way to bake and even fulfill some local orders switching from cupcakes to cookies that held up better in transport. A few years later, in March 2020, Caroline left her corporate job to pursue her dream of starting her own cookie company. She said, “I knew this was a crazy idea and a huge risk, but I had this optimistic, somewhat delusional confidence that I could do it.” To Caroline’s surprise, the Covid-19 lockdown began just 10 days after her big career shift, but she didn’t let that stop her.

Big Dreams Turn Into Plans

2020 inspired Caroline to jump into action. She knew it was time to get creative and find a way to infuse her baking and community-driven efforts together. Caroline shared “When I wasn’t homeschooling I was baking for first responders and other front-line workers. I gave every free minute I had to help those who needed it most in a way I could. What began as a complimentary dozen here and there for local hospitals quickly turned into massive cookie donations each week. I became known as ‘Caroline the Cookie Girl’ and I spent much of 2020 and 2021 in hospitals and old-age care facilities handing out cookies or donating money I had raised to organizations helping those affected by Covid-19.”

for cup sakes hoboken

As the cookies began to spark joy around the area, the word started to spread, and fast. It wasn’t long before donations began to transform into actual orders. Soon Caroline began taking on clients as a legitimate business and fulfilling custom orders. Her dream of For Cup Sakes was born. “It was just one of those things. During Covid, people were just looking for things to celebrate or send to someone. Covid for me was incredibly busy.” Caroline’s creations truly helped people connect during a difficult time. Having something to smile about seems like a core value for her. Soon, Caroline found herself busy fulfilling orders in her apartment for weddings, bridal showers, birthday parties, holidays, and more. Caroline shared that she has had the privilege of baking for notable clients including Booking.com, NFL, I Heart Radio, Netflix, and Nike. Though Caroline says “Regardless of client status or size of the order, I take great pride in baking a delicious cookie that is also a work of art, with a goal of giving back.”

for cup sakes hoboken

Photo Credit: For Cup Sakes

On the same note, Caroline shared a sentimental blurb on her website saying “My business has afforded me the opportunity to do what I love. It has allowed me to financially provide for my two kids, who are my motivation every single day, and it has given me a platform to try to help make a positive impact in the lives of others. Every day I get up with the goal to be a good mom, make positive change, and bake the world a better place.”

 

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As For Cup Sakes grew (thanks to Caroline’s delicious recipes and word of mouth), she transitioned from an apartment kitchen to a rented commercial space in 2022 and recently decided it was time to expand again. In 2024, Caroline and her five employees started to call the new sunlit studio in Monroe Center home. Caroline officially announced the opening of the new space in September 2024.

See More: The Ultimate Guide to Desserts in Montclair

Current Happenings

 

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Today Caroline’s calendars are packed with cookie deliveries and appointments at Memorial Sloan Kettering on the Upper East Side. Caroline shared with HG that after her breast cancer diagnosis in May of 2024, she began scheduling her cookie deliveries throughout the city to align with her appointments at MSK. She laughed and said, “This is just how I am.” She used this time in the city to start prospecting more clients, particularly in the hotel realm. Now, the unstoppable Caroline is the official cookie supplier of several notable hotels in New York City including The Carlyle Hotel, 1 Hotel Central Park, and The Refinery Hotel, and is even hosting cookie pop-ups at The Plaza throughout the holiday season. It’s no surprise that Caroline has also already started to use this experience as a way to continue to spread joy to those in need, still delivering thousands of cookies a week. For Cup Sakes continues to donate cookies to breast cancer-related organizations, cancer research, and The Ronald McDonald House. Recently, Caroline took to Instagram to encourage women to get mammograms and annual screenings to echo the importance of early detection.

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