Baking History Since 1924

The Early Days
In 1924, Benjamin Tillman “Pop” Byrd, Sr., at the age of 28, began baking his famous Scotch Oatmeal cookies in beautiful Savannah Georgia. He had a small bakery downtown near City Market and delivered the fresh cookies to stores around town in his Model T Ford. Typically, the cookies were sold out of large glass jars at ‘2 for a penny’. Pop’s cookies quickly became a favorite among locals and several more items were added to the bakery lineup, but nothing was as unique or as popular as the Scotch Oatmeal cookie. As the business grew, Pop decided to move the bakery closer to home on the outskirts of town, a little community called Sandfly. In 1929, he converted a tin-sided barn into a larger bakery which he lovingly named “Byrd’s Famous Cookies.”

When Benjamin Tillman “Cookie” Byrd, Jr. took over the company in 1949, he created separate bakery and retail spaces. With a desire to play the tour guide to locals wanting to learn more about the bakery, “Cookie” Byrd opened the Cookie Shanty. Inside the Cookie Shanty, he sold traditional cookies as well as unique products of his own creation, including the Benne Wafer, named after the cookie’s signature benne seeds. He began packing Byrd cookies inside sturdy metal tins, which allowed for products to be shipped across the country, expanding the company’s reach far beyond Georgia.

New Levels of Success
In 1988, “Cookie” Byrd’s daughter, Kay Curl, took the family business to even higher levels of success with exciting new flavors and beautiful tin designs, expanding Byrd’s presence in the gift industry. Byrd’s tart Key Lime Cooler was named the Dessert of the Year at the National Food Association’s Fancy Food Show, marking the first time a cookie earned top dessert honors. Originally created as a birthday gift to Kay’s husband, Benny Curl, who loves key lime pie, the Key Lime Cooler continues to be one of the company’s best-selling items.

In 2011, Stephanie Curl Lindley stepped in as the 4th generation owner, dramatically increasing revenue and investing millions to upgrade production equipment. A savvy business leader, Stephanie Lindley has expanded Byrd’s reach even further through strategic partnerships with major retailers including LL Bean, Bergdorf Goodman and Delta Airlines. In 2017, Byrd announced a $4 million expansion at its bakery in Savannah, adding 10,000 square feet of space, significantly increasing production capacity and creating more than 50 new jobs.

A Bright Future
Today, Byrd Cookie Company is one of the largest and fastest-growing independent cookie, snack and gift companies in the United States. Proudly headquartered in Savannah, this award-winning, family-owned company provides fresh-baked products to customers around the world. The company also creates private label items for companies including Neiman-Marcus, Ritz-Carlton and Cumberland Farms and operates successful retail stores in Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee.