Edgewood mom creates sweet business

Katie Cornutt was working as a realtor when she found out at a prenatal appointment that her third child would born with a heart defect. Knowing she couldn’t be exposed to germs at a daycare, Cornutt would have to stay at home to care for her.

Since Lila was born, she has had two open heart surgeries and has a feeding tube. She will turn two in July and needs an additional open heart surgery before she is four.

Cornutt, a Homewood resident, knew she wanted to do something from home while caring for Lila, but she couldn’t decide just what that would be. She had been making cinnamon rolls using her grandmother’s recipe for years and would bake a big batch every month to share extras with friends. Last December, one of her neighbors told her she should sell them.

“This is something that comes easy to me,” she said. “I didn’t think I could make money doing it.”

She decided to give it a try. Her husband suggested she keep the name of the company simple, so they named it Rolls. Cornutt had a friend who does graphic design friend to make a logo for her, and in March she created an Instagram page for the business. She said she spent about $20 promoting it and did a giveaway and her followers grew quickly.

“It really been by word of mouth,” she said. “I make the rolls almost every day, to my capacity. I probably average about 90 to 100 pans a week. If I post that I have openings, within two hours I’m sold out.”

“Rolls wouldn’t have come to be if not for me staying home with Lila,” she said. “Through this, I’ve been able to give back to places like Children’s Hospital and the Bell Center and other people that have touched us.”

Cornutt said that she has many repeat customers that are the base of her business. Some of those send “happies” (a surprise batch of cinnamon rolls) to friends each month. Cornutt delivers them and includes a note from the sender.

“Getting to surprise someone with the rolls makes the day brighter,” she said.

The recipe for her rolls is a simple one with natural ingredients using butter, sugar and flour (and they are preservative-free). Rolls can be ordered baked or frozen and come in pans of three or five. Prices range from $5 to $10. Baked rolls are made fresh each morning and the frozen ones are dough to be baked at home. Icing options include original and cream cheese.

Cornutt enjoys being able to work from home and that Lila can go with her to make her deliveries. While Lila goes to the Bell Center several times each week, her other children, ages 10 and 7, attend Edgewood Elementary.

“My son is my inspiration because he always requested the rolls, but it morphed into the business because of Lila,” Cornutt said.

She recently took her Rolls to sell at an event and sold out all 30 pans within an hour. She said she may do more of that in the future and also takes preorders for holidays.

In addition to delivery to areas including Homewood, Mountain Brook, Vestavia Hills and downtown, Cornutt offers pickup at her Edgewood home and accepts cash or Venmo payments.

For more information and to order via a Google document in the profile, visit the Rolls Instagram page at instagram.com/rolls.homewood.