Episode 102 · May 2, 2023
Ifaseyi & Onifade: Mother and Son Duo who are making life sweeter one bite at a time
with Shaye & Onifade, Mother-and-son founders of Onifade's Cookie Co.
29 min
Ifaseyi & Onifade: Mother and Son Duo who are making life sweeter one bite at a time
Never miss an episode
In this episode
In this episode I sit down with a mother and son duo I've been wanting to talk to for a while — Shaye and her son Onifade. Onifade is 15 (and heading into high school), and he's opening a brick-and-mortar location for his own business, Onifade's Cookie Co. What makes this so special isn't just the cookies — it's watching a mom who has fostered, encouraged, and walked alongside her son's passion since he was six years old, back when they baked cookies in brown paper bags with little smiley faces drawn on them.
We talk about how it all started with a dream to travel to Nigeria — they'd be the first generation of their family to go back — and Onifade offering to bake his way there. We get into their time in the Kitchen 66 program, the business ideas that pour out of this young man, and their commitment to organic, whole-food ingredients (no corn syrup, raw sugar, sea salt) that trace all the way back to Shaye's grandmother's backyard garden in Fort Worth.
I love that they call this their ministry — bringing people together with good food, watching strangers share space and start conversations. This one is warm, honest, and a beautiful picture of a parent nurturing a child's God-given gifts and talents. Keep going, you two.
Key takeaways
- Encouragement is everything. Shaye's steady 'it's okay, we'll perfect it' — even when a customer didn't like the cookies — is what kept Onifade going and growing.
- A big dream can be the spark. This whole business started when a six-year-old wanted to bake his way to Nigeria, where his family would be the first generation to return.
- The Kitchen 66 program let them play with their concept without getting buried in licensing, legal, and health-department hurdles first — plus a test kitchen to sell to real customers and get feedback.
- Going into business with family works when you respect each other's talents, aren't afraid, and commit to working out issues instead of staying mad in the same space.
- Quality ingredients are a choice with a story. Everything is organic — raw sugar, sea salt, no corn syrup — rooted in how Shaye was raised with her grandmother's garden.
- Honor where you came from. Grandma's 'Sock It To Me' cake recipe (lightly perfected) is on the menu as a nod to family and heritage.
- Living purposefully can look like ministry — you can't cook or bake mad, and good food gives people a reason to sit down, talk, and share space they never would have otherwise.
“So I always say, like, this is our ministry. You bring people together with good food and good products, and people talk to each other. They may have never talked to each other before, but they're sitting down sharing space.”
“You can't cook mad, can't bake mad. It's not gonna come out right.”
“When a door opens and it's just so clearly meant for you — everything was there. All we had to do was come in and turn the lights on.”
“I call him my miracle man.”
About Shaye
Mother-and-son founders of Onifade's Cookie Co.
Shaye is a chef and caterer who grew up cooking alongside her grandmother in South Fort Worth, Texas, learning to love whole, garden-fresh food. Her 15-year-old son Onifade inherited a love of baking and, starting at age six, began baking cookies to fund a family trip to Nigeria. Together they've built Onifade's Cookie Co., an organic, whole-food cookie business opening its own storefront.
Prefer another app? Open this episode on Spotify.
Free community
Connect, learn, and grow — together.
Listening is where it starts. The free community is where it sticks — Nancy, the conversations, and a circle of women cheering each other on. It's free to join, and there's a seat for you.
Join the free community →Keep listening
Episode 103 · May 9, 2023
Show notesAmy Seiffert: Encouraging Women to Nourish their Soul
If you've ever experienced feeling tired, anxious or overwhelmed, this is the episode for you! Leading up to Mother's Day, I'm sharing a guest who has experienced all those feelings and more.
Episode 101 · Apr 25, 2023
Show notesBetty Casey: Award Winning Author and Illustrator
Betty Selakovich Casey is an award winning author and illustrator of three children's books: The Prince and the Prairie, That is a Hat and May Finds Her Way.
Episode 104 · May 16, 2023
Show notesKirsten Vossler is Rejoicing in Motherhood!
This podcast is for all the Mothers out there! This episode visits with mother of nine, Kirsten Vossler, host of Rejoicing in Motherhood Podcast.