Interview with Liza Abbott — founder of Dear Liza’s Custom Cookies and Dessert and our partner for the Orange Rose Campaign
Liza Abbott is the founder of Dear Liza’s Custom Cookies and Desserts, the cutest, most delicious and beautiful bites of sweetness we’ve eaten in a long time. Liza joined us to talk about why she’s joining our Orange Rose Campaign this Mother’s Day.
Shop the Orange Rose Mother’s Day cookies here.
Every Mother Counts: Liza, everybody has a story about the way motherhood has inspired or affected them and why EMC’s mission is personal to them. Tell us your “mom story.”
Liza: My mom is definitely the biggest influence in my life. She’s my best friend and I talk to her every single day. She’s a first grade teacher and I get my creative abilities and organization from her. I’m very much my mother’s daughter. We operate the same way. We think the same way. I really look up to her. She’s dedicated her life to helping children, especially in first grade when she helps kids learn to read. That’s where children really develop who they are as people and I’ve watched her do that my whole life. She’s extremely important to me and she’s always been a big part of my life.
EMC: How did you connect with EMC?
Liza: Over Christmas, Maybelline cosmetics ordered holiday cookie sets for all their models and Christy, obviously, is one of them. We customized the sets for each individual woman and for Christy, we did the Every Mother Counts logo. As I was creating her cookies and thinking about how great the logo looked, I was also thinking about how great it would be to do something collaborative with the organization. When I got a call from EMC, asking if I wanted my cookies to be part of their Mother’s Day campaign, of course, I said “yes.” I’m so honored to be part of it.
EMC: How have issues around motherhood affected your life, work and community?
Liza: In terms of my business, it all started with mothers. That’s how my business grew — by helping mothers throw their kids’ birthday parties. Later, I started doing corporate events but I owe my whole business to the mothers of New York City who spread the word. I feel like women are the ones who talk about everything. We’re always telling each other, “You have to try this or you have to go there.” I’ve never done any type of promotion. It’s all been word of mouth and a lot of it comes from mothers. The women in my life and community, many of them mothers, have been key players in everything I’ve been able to do. It seems to me that’s how it is in so many walks of life — it’s all about the mothers.
EMC: What do you hope that EMC’s Orange Rose Campaign will do for moms?
Liza: I hope it brings a lot of awareness to the issues mothers face. Before I was introduced to Every Mother Counts, I didn’t even know what maternal mortality was. I think mothers are the most important people in our lives and everyone deserves to have that connection with their mother. The majority of my customers are mothers and I’m around pregnant women all the time. Of course you don’t want to go to the dark side and talk about these issues in a way that will scare moms, but it’s something I don’t ever hear being talked about. I love Every Mother Counts because they go full force. They really advocate for what they believe in and it’s important to me to work with people who are passionate about what they do. I’m so fortunate to be part of something so important.
