Southern Indiana Business September/ October 2022 | Page 51

Competing with the

BIG

GUYS

What makes local businesses stand out

By Libby Cunningham
The pair get up nearly every morning and milk the nearly 100 cows at the farm . Then they get to work , taking care of the crops . Aside from purchasing the products at the grocery store , the
Book family has a small produce stand out front of their farm . “ I think the ( most rewarding part ) is watching your stuff grow ,” Oliver said . “ You plant something , it grows , you get a good harvest .”
In Floyd County , there ’ s another family business that ’ s multiple generations deep .
Rookie ’ s Cookies has been providing delectable treats to New Albany since September 19 , 1939 .
Owner Shara Augsburger said her grandfather Edgar Rook started the bakery nearly 83-years-ago . That ’ s where the name ‘ Rookie ’ s Cookies ’ comes from .
Augsburger ’ s father was one of Rookie ’ s stepsons and she took it over from him .
Before moving to the current location in Augsburger said Rookie ’ s was a full line bakery that also did catering .
“ I really enjoyed that part of the business ,” she said . “ And as the years evolved , and my dad got closer to wanting to retire , we sold the building and we moved to this location and just concentrated on cookies and cakes that was about 2008 .”
The cookies and cakes are some of the most iconic things about the bakery .
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