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<p>Scott Blackwell is the founder of Immaculate Baking Company. </p> <p>At first, it was a desperate need for college tuition money that fueled his first foray into the food business. Using his knack for creative resourcefulness, Scott began selling homemade pies (made in his tiny apartment) to local Greenville restaurants. What began as a venture of desperation soon became a viable little business with over 28 restaurants buying his extraordinary pies.</p> <p>After college, several other food ventures followed suit. From driving a seafood truck up and down the South Carolina coast to establishing Ben and Jerry's 9th ice cream distributorship (covering the Carolinas), Scott absorbed everything he learned along the way.</p> <p>At 23, Scott sold his Ben and Jerry's distributorship, paid off his student loans, and moved to Columbia, SC with 30 dollars in his pocket. What began as a spontaneous itch to try something different soon led to the grand opening of his restaurant, Immaculate Consumption, a popular gathering spot with an eclectic menu and home of the only coffee roasting machine in town! Inspired by the cult following of his artisan-roasted coffee, Scott began making cookies and biscotti to be served with the fresh espresso and soon crowds were pouring through the doors not to eat funky sandwiches and sip lattes but to satisfy the cravings for his infamous pancake-sized cookies! It didn't take long for him to recognize the incredible potential of his famous cookie recipes, and he sold the restaurant and moved to Flat Rock, NC in order to pursue that full time.</p> <p>Well, like many people who drop everything to follow a dream, Scott discovered that it wasn't quite as glamorous as it sounded. There he was doing exactly what he wanted to do, but doing it in his two-car garage, and he suddenly found himself lacking both inspiration and confidence. With this in mind, he turned to folk art, an old interest that had never failed to inspire him, and began traveling, often for days at a time, to visit with different folk artists he had befriended in the past. While driving one day, he had a revelation - why not combine his two passions, folk art and cookies, into the start of his new business? With that thought, Scott returned to his garage, newly inspired, and Immaculate Baking Company was born.</p> <p>Almost 12 years have passed since then, but Scott is more passionate about the food business than ever before. He still develops all of the recipes himself and can be found most any day scouring the grocery aisles for signs of new products and new trends. Aside from his overwhelming interest in Immaculate, Scott is also an avid folk art collector, founder of the Folk Artist's Foundation and has even dipped into the world of filmmaking to complete the 10-year documentary project about Southern folk artists entitled "All Rendered Truth." </p>