Minnesota State Fair visitors can expect up to three million cookies on peak days as Jenny Olson abandons her Los Angeles routine for 12 days to run Sweet Martha’s, a family operation now in its 47th fair appearance. Olson balances that seasonal obligation with an eight‑year role leading community and brand engagement at Dôen, while the stand remains rooted in a business begun in 1979 by her mother Martha Rossini, her father Gary Olson, and family friend Neil O’Leary.
The booth grew from a backyard plywood setup into three permanent fair locations after the partners won approval to sell cookies, a pivot from an original plan that included yogurt. Preparations begin long before August, with the team starting work in February and hiring more than 750 staff for the run. Many hires are students who return to school after the event. Katie Atlas, a childhood neighbor of Olson’s, oversees scheduling.
Logistics are exacting. The stand mixes and bakes from scratch, with fresh ingredient deliveries arriving each night during the fair rather than bulk prepackaged shipments. Olson says the crew starts each morning with what they call "Classical Hour," a short calm before production ramps up. One mixing bowl yields 5,000 cookies. Walk‑in ovens bake 2,000 cookies per load, and with 22 ovens across the three locations the team can bake 44,000 cookies in 12 minutes. Average daily output is about one million cookies, rising to three million on the busiest days.
Over the 12 fair days the business uses 197,000 pounds of sugar, 143,000 pounds of flour, 125,000 pounds of chocolate chips, and 58,000 pounds of eggs. The operation remains a family affair: at least 20 relatives typically work each year, making the fair a yearly reunion as much as a business run. Olson’s brother David, sister‑in‑law Erica who manages public relations, cousins who schedule and produce social content, and shifts of baking staff all contribute. One cousin, an engineer named Will, built a system to calculate oven loads according to crowd size. Olson’s husband Aidan and his parents also take shifts.
Style and comfort shape the uniform—a bright yellow Sweet Martha’s tee paired with vintage fatigue pants, old Dickies, or Patagonia Baggies, and recently yellow Human by Nature shorts joined the look. After decades at the fair the family describes the operation as finely tuned, a seasonal engine that returns each August to serve crowds and sustain a multi‑generation business.
