BROOKHAVEN — Joe Campbell, known as ThaCookie Man, announced to the public he would no longer conduct business on Brookway Boulevard. He is known for his business Tha Cookie Trap’s fresh baked cookies, which are addictive.

Campbell started the business in 2020 to create generational wealth for his daughters and as a way to reinvent himself after an illness. His business was commonly found in the parking lot of Fast Pace Health at 760 Brookway Boulevard next to Blue Sky.

Campbell stated he obtained consent from property owners and went through the proper licensing channels with the city of Brookhaven to operate his business there for the past three years. 

He claims to have paid the city $250 every three months for a transient vendor license to conduct his business there but was fed up with others not following the rules and selling on top of him. Brookhaven City Clerk’s Office states the transient vendor license is $250 the first three months and then renewed for $25 for another three months as set by the Mississippi State Auditor’s Office. 

“I didn’t mind spending that $250 every three months to conduct my business on the side of the road but whenever that pretty lil piece of paper y’all would give me didn’t mean anything to the other people working on top of me, laughing and bragging about how they ain’t paying and things almost going left due to disrespect is when I had a major problem,” he wrote in an announcement on the business Facebook page. “I am an asset to this community, not a liability. I am the perfect example of you don’t have to always make it to the pros, be a lawyer or doctor to be successful. I had my kids out there hands on helping me, teaching them work ethics, how to talk to people and how to keep the business going when my time is up.”

People who sell Mississippi grown fruit are not required to pay the transient vendor license fee but have to get an exempt form from the City Clerk’s Office according to rules set by the Mississippi State Auditor’s Office under Mississippi law. Brookhaven City Clerk’s Office said if someone calls about a person conducting business without a license they send the police to make sure they have one. 

Campbell said in The Dart in 2022, and in the announcement, he still plans and dreams to have multiple brick and mortar locations. He said this is not the end of the road for his company.

We will provide updates as they come available.