Luke Pascal & Damon (Boogie) Dash II of Chipz Cookies
These young men have been around business their entire lives. Damon (Boogie) Dash II, The son of entrepreneur and Jay Z's former business partner Damon Dash and Luke Pascal son of Restaurateur Vincent Pascal have seen what it takes to survive in the business world and are prepared to carry the tradition with their own pastry company called Chipz Cookies. SandalTraveler.com got the chance to sit down with Luke Pascal and Boogie Dash to learn more.
1. How did the you guys come up with the idea for Chipz Cookies?
Luke Pascal: It started when we were going to school as kids. My Dad had this bakery on 83rd street and Columbus ave called Columbus bakery and his pastry chef Viko Ortega made the best cookies on the planet and we would buy these cookies everyday but the bakery eventually closed down but Viko was still baking cookies, so my dad told me and Boogie, why don't you guys start your own Cookie company? So we took it from there.
Damon (Boogie) Dash II: The way the name and logo came about was when we had a girl who was working on our logo concept decided to draw a “Cookie man”. He was a little cookie with arms and legs attached to him. She was joking around and she said we should name him “Chip”! Like Chocolate “Chip”. We laughed about it but the name stuck. Thus the name Chipz Cookies was born. We added the “Z” to make sure people would differentiate us from potato Chips. We started using the name Chipz when we would talk about “The cookies”, and one day my dads partner Raquel Horn said to us “Why are you using a cookie man? Why don’t you use a chipmunk.. Since its called “Chipz”.
2. Now you both have fathers who are successful business men, Did that shape you guys to be young Entreperneurs?
Damon (Boogie) Dash II: Well my dad always told me if you can pay for it, its yours and nobody can tell you anything, so from that day I realize I gotta get my mine & start something of my own.
Luke Pascal: My dad has always taught me to do the right thing. To make sure your putting a smile on your customers faces and to give them what they paid for.
3. How many different types of cookies are you guys making?
Luke Pascal: We carry five different flavors. Oatmeal Raisin, Peanut butter, Ginger, Chocolate chip & Blackout. The Blackout cookie is made with dark Belgian chocolate with white chocolate chips, it's definitely a favorite with the fans.
4. Chipz Cookies is sold in Zabars and Fairway Market. Are you looking to expand in other stores?
Luke Pascal: We want to grow gradually. When you roll out a new product, it's important to have a company market your product well and Zabars & Fairway market have been doing that. But we hope to expand in more stores nationwide.
5. Chips Ahoy vs. Chipz Cookies?
Damon (Boogie) Dash II: Chipz Cookies.
6. Now I know your into Production Luke, and Boogie you've been everywhere in New York as everyone's favorite DJ?, are you guys going to scale back from music to focus more on the pastry business?
Damon (Boogie) Dash II: No way, everything that we are doing is something that we love, so we can't treat one more than the other. We are trying to intertwined the music with the cookies by having our mixtapes on a flash drive and have it connected with the Chipz Cookies packaging.
7. Is there any conflict between you two as far as taste and what flavors to put out?
Luke Pascal: There's no conflict. We both love the same flavors and to be honest we listen to what our customers say and think, so when we do demos in the street or stores we know what to put out.
8. I seen pictures of your company catering some high profile events like at Clyde Frazier's restaurant and events at the Essex House. What's next for you two?
Luke Pascal: We have a partnership with Lou Dibella boxing that Boogie put together where we have a Chipz Cookies station with all the flavors for sale at each event. We are working on a new food lifestyle magazine called A dirty napkin, look out for that! and we are also working on our online store so customers can purchase our goods from afar.