Bren Isgritt always had a knack for business and a love of cooking, and even at a young age, she dreamed of owning her own business one day. She knew she was willing to work hard to achieve this dream, but she wasn’t expecting the many challenges she’d encounter along the way.
Born and raised on a dairy farm in Colorado City, Texas, Isgritt spent her free time helping with the farm and participating in 4-H cooking classes. At the same time, she watched her father run his farm with integrity and honesty that inspired her to follow his lead.
She attended Texas Tech University in the 1970s, where she was one of few women in the business school, sparking her perseverant spirit as she broke through the stereotypes of the age. As soon as she graduated, she dove headfirst into her family’s first business venture: a clothing store. For many years, she served her family, helped run the store, and settled into life, all the while holding on to her dream of business ownership.
It wasn’t until 1998, at age 45, that Isgritt took her first big leap into the business world. She and her best friend Janet decided to purchase Kiss the Cook, a small kitchen supply store in Abilene, located in a strip mall with only 800 square feet of space. The friends-turned-business-owners quickly got to work to make improvements, wanting their store to feel familiar, where customers could find exactly what they’re looking for. Understanding that her customers deserve the very best, Isgritt personally vetted every product on her shelves, never wanting to sell something she didn’t believe in.
Within just three years, Kiss the Cook’s new business model and success necessitated a bigger space, so she and Janet began looking outside of Abilene. They ended up in Wimberley, just outside Dripping Springs, where they fell in love with the town. Isgritt recalls how some of their community back in Abilene worried they wouldn't survive. “But they don’t know the Hill Country,” Isgritt says now. Although it was hard to push through the negativity, their belief in themselves carried them through.
They bought a 1940s house right on the Wimberley Square (interestingly, it used to be the home of the town’s switchboard operator during WWII) and began six months of renovations. In the meantime, they packed the Abilene location into a moving van and trekked it down to Wimberley. Finally, in October 2001, Kiss the Cook opened its doors and once again met with immediate success.
This success meant they were able to open a second storefront in Boerne five years later, after renovating yet another old home. Isgritt was definitely living out her business-owner dreams, reaping the rewards of patience and tenacity. However, managing two thriving store locations is no easy task; not wanting to scale back, they decided the best move was to split their ventures, each taking over one store. So in 2014, Isgritt retained ownership of the Wimberley location, while Janet took over the Boerne store.
This was a pivotal moment: “That was the first time I didn’t have someone to lean on,” Isgritt says. She knew she’d either make it or she wouldn’t, and it would all depend on her. She proved her business savvy as her store gradually doubled its revenue in the years following the split. Since then, Isgritt has continued to run Kiss the Cook, keeping up the homey, personal atmosphere her customers have come to expect when they walk through the door.
She loves meeting her customers, hearing where they’re from, and learning why they keep coming back to Kiss the Cook. “Every year, people would walk in the door and say, ‘I love this store’ because it’s so different from any of the other shops in Wimberley,” Isgritt shares. It’s the only place you can go to talk about a recipe, get personal advice and recommendations, and find hundreds of unique products that even Amazon would have a hard time competing with.
Even now, at age 72, Isgritt is still thriving. “It’s never been a drudgery for me,” she says. “Not many people get to work in their passions.” These days, she no longer works in the store, preferring to handle the business side of things, while store manager Dean Chambers (who trained as a professional chef in Italy), makes sure Kiss the Cook continues going strong.
Looking back, Isgritt is grateful to God for making her dreams a reality, and is even on the lookout for more opportunities for her store. Maybe some cooking classes in the future? Only time will tell, but with Isgritt in charge, it’s sure to be a shining success.
KissTheCookWimberley.com | @kissthecookwimberley