Tamika Heard has been in the family business for years, having first started working at the Makeda’s Cookies store on Airways Boulevard in 2003. But now, she’s ready to start a venture of her own — the Butteriffic Bakery & Cafe.
Makeda’s opened in 1999, named in honor of Makeda Hill, who lost her battle to leukemia at age 6. Heard’s parents, Pamela and Maurice Hill, took over the business in 2002.
Heard had been working as a youth minister for 10 years before joining the Makeda’s team. “The program I was in, the grant phased out, so I really needed a job,” she says. “My mom was like, ‘I can only pay you $4 an hour,’ and because I had my savings from the other position, I was like, ‘Okay, help the family business — I can do it.”
She spent her first years at Makeda’s learning the ropes. “I had to work my way up to the baking and the forking and all of that,” Heard says. “I could only wrap cookies and ring up customers the first two years. Then my mom showed me how to make cookies and the proper way to package and serve them.”
In 2005, Heard moved to the Raleigh LaGrange location, where she took on more responsibility. “They let me pretty much run that store,” she says. After about four years there, Heard “got the bright idea” to open her own Makeda’s in Midtown.
“It didn’t do well at all. I jumped the gun,” she says. “But after I failed miserably, my parents let me come back.” She went to run the Makeda’s in the Hickory Ridge Mall, where she stayed from 2011 to 2014. Then, she left the family business altogether and went to work for Nike. But, as it turned out, a corporate atmosphere wasn’t for her. “I hate punching the clock … working for other people,” she says.
The Hills received MEMshop approval for the Downtown Makeda’s location in 2015. The program creates partnerships to make use of vacant storefronts while building up local businesses and offers rental assistance, marketing services, and more. “We were making like $25-$50 a day [Downtown], and I was like, ‘Mom, let me come back and I’ll boost these sales and make you guys more visible,'” Heard says. “We’re still here today; definitely boosted the sales, and more visible to the point where I want to stay here and see what we can bring to this location even more.”
The rebranding of the location at 488 S. Second comes as the Hills move bulk production of Makeda’s cookies from there to a large warehouse to focus on distribution and service more grocery stores. “We got the contract for 350 more Kroger stores,” Heard says. “I already knew I wasn’t going to go to the warehouse. I’m not being defiant; I have to see customers. I would be miserable in the warehouse. I gotta be in the community.”
Will Heard’s Butteriffic Bakery & Cafe still serve the classics the community has grown to love — including the famous homemade butter cookies? “You butter believe it!” she says. “I’m actually going to amp up the butteriffic experience a little bit. But that’s a surprise.”
The cafe will serve coffee, including Ugly Mug’s Butter Moon. Heard’s goal is to become a barista, but for now they’ll start with basic coffee and slowly roll into cappuccinos and a more robust drink menu. Plans also include adding gluten-free, keto-friendly, and vegan items, as well as muffins, egg muffins, new pie flavors, and more.
“My parents just do cookies, and I understand that. That’s how they’ve grown,” she says. “This has to happen so I can grow. Under my parents, I’ll always be in my comfort zone, and there is no growth to be had in a comfort zone.”
The grand opening celebration for the Butteriffic Bakery & Cafe will be Saturday, March 6th, at 488 S. Second. The event will feature a sidewalk sale with local vendors, food trucks, Memphis Grindhouse Coffee, and live music in Army Park. For more info, find “A Butteriffic Grand Opening” on Facebook.
Lorna Field 