Today we’d like to introduce you to Susan Hallak.
Hi Susan, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I grew up in my family’s candy distribution business. We all ate, slept, and breathed entrepreneurship, and candy was a main part of our lives. So, leading a candy business is not something that was an impulse for me. Far from it! I learned all that I know from my family’s business. Over time, that background afforded me the opportunity to branch off and create a new product category (gummy base for edible manufacturing) within an existing market. From the time I was a very young girl, I learned the ins and outs of the candy business. As soon as I could read and write, I helped my father take candy orders and fill them. I was only seven when I started helping my parents deliver candy from their rundown Toyota pickup truck to neighborhood stores. In fact, it is funny because they started same-day delivery long before Amazon ever existed! That set my family apart for customer service and coming up with new ideas to serve those customers. After high school, I took a full-time leadership role in the company and worked hard toward continual improvement and growth.
In 2008, I got the “Internet bug” and started Candy Pros.com as a side business to my parents’ company. (In fact, just as my parents pioneered same-day delivery, I also created an online presence when the Internet was still young. See, small companies can be trailblazers!) That started an avalanche of events that led to where I am today.
First, my family’s company was only business-to-business, but the online presence opened new markets. The general public now knew us! People literally came knocking at the warehouse doors, demanding to come in and shop in person. One reason was that when they came to pick up the products they ordered online, they smelled the delicious odors wafting from the warehouse. So, a year after launching CandyPros.com, we opened the warehouse to the public so anyone with or without a business could browse aisles of colorful and tasty treats. That “warehouse experience” was rated highly on Yelp, and sales quickly surpassed those of the entire wholesale business.
At the same time, the online business differentiated CandyPros.com from the original family business model with an entirely new market. CandyPros.com catered to the bulk candy market, selling bulk wrapped and unwrapped candy in volume, and we also readily customized products and orders. For example, if someone wanted huge quantities of certain colors for a special event, we did that with a smile. That is who we are!
Another thing that made a big difference for Candy Pros happened a few states away in Colorado. When cannabis became legal there, new manufacturers and distributors needed high-quality gummy products. Candy Pros was ready and waiting! (And no, Candy Pros does not, by the way, trade in cannabis products, but we value those who use our gummy products to work safely and legally, with the strictest of oversight.)
As time went on, it finally made sense to officially separate CandyPros.com from my family’s business simply because the models were so very different. So here I am!
Even so, as I move forward, I don’t forget my past. The lessons I learned from my family are at my very core.
First, as the daughter of Iraqi immigrants, I saw firsthand how hard work, commitment to others, resourcefulness, and ALWAYS doing the right thing can make the American dream a reality. In addition to what I learned about candy, I learned what it meant to be customer focused. But even more, I saw firsthand entrepreneurial spirit in action. I saw the determination needed to succeed in business and, most of all, how innovation and customer service make all the difference.
Second, because I am by nature innovative and creative, I have constantly evolved Candy Pros’ product line. Each day I look for what the marketplace and find new ways Candy Pros can address those needs for our wonderful customers.
Third, and most importantly, because I care so much about others–my customers and my team–I bring heart to my work each and every day. I gained a guardian angel last year when my father passed away from cancer. But that difficult time fueled my passion even more. As my father became more frail, the strength of the Candy Pros community became more apparent. I was flooded with overwhelming support from my clients. They not only sent kind wishes of support but also sent care packages for my father with the cannabis edibles they created using our Candy Pros gummy base. My father really relied on them, especially toward the end. It is so hard to talk about this, but this confirmed to me that I had officially found my purpose. One of the toughest moments of my life was also a great motivator to continue to create innovative products to support Candy Pros’ purpose. I truly love this industry!
Thinking about my parents and their American Dream, one of my missions is to “pay it forward.” I love to be a champion for those just starting out. Of course, I never pass a lemonade stand without stopping to give the proprietor a sale (and usually some business advice, as well)!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Candy Pros has been very successful, and because of our success, some people think it’s been an easy ride or that our success came overnight. That is not so! Even so, to date, every single bump in the road has led to the greatest opportunities and, ultimately, our continued success. Some of these bumps felt like the most catastrophic events that, at the time, felt impossible to bounce back from, but we have proved that we are resilient and bounce back 100x harder and stronger. My first big struggle was leaving my family’s business. I worked there until four years ago. I helped run their successful candy business for many decades. I always contributed and learned every step of the way. As I became more interested in the world of business and more aware of industry trends, I felt a calling to go after my own ideas and create something unique. I discovered a great need in the marketplace. Leaving the family business to start my own venture was one of the hardest and scariest decisions I have ever made. I no longer had the comfort of my family to lean back on for support. I was on my own, and failure was not an option.
Another struggle, in my opinion, is being a woman in business. Sometimes as a woman, I feel like I am not taken seriously. I have been asked on several occasions if “they could talk to my boss.” Every time that happens, I smile inside. I always think, “If they only knew I could make a decision that could make them a lot of money or give them a promotion, how differently they would approach the situation!” With all this being said, I like to use this to my advantage most of the time. I find it all pretty funny.
Another early challenge was hiring the right people and doing business with the right partners. I like to believe everyone is ethical and always puts their best foot forward, but that is not always the case. In terms of people who work for Candy Pros, I am now confident that they share my vision and values and, of course, my enthusiasm for what we do! The right fit is so important. My team and I are all committed to being the best we can be in every possible way.
When it comes to doing business with the right partners, that was a hard-earned lesson, too. One of my biggest nightmares was receiving a truckload of defective raw materials from a supplier I had trusted. But every nightmare can be a lesson, too. After that, I understood that it was important to have strict quality control in place all along the way and, most importantly, never sacrifice our standards.
There are good challenges, too! I have one challenge that I welcome every day—one that keeps me going! I love to educate our clients and potential clients about the value of our products and services and what it could mean to them and their bottom line. We always evolve. We are THE leader in our industry in innovation… finding new ways to address our expanding market. I’ve learned to strategically focus my creativity by offering real benefits to clients and potential clients and, again, show them the value of our partnerships. It is a win-win for everybody!
Looking back on that bumpy road, I wouldn’t trade it for a fast freeway at all! It made me wiser and more effective in so many ways. To others who want to follow a similar path, buckle up and expect the potholes. Yet embrace them because it might be that very pothole that gives you the competitive advantage!
We’ve been impressed with CandyPros.com, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
In short, Candy Pros is a distributor of our branded gummy base ingredients that our customers use for EASY manufacturing of edibles. (Be sure to visit us at CandyPros.com to see pictures and descriptions of our products!) Edibles are one of the fastest-growing product categories in the market, and we are proud to be the leader in serving this industry! We partner with companies to create the best gummies and most successful products on the market. Candy Pros is a passionate team of people dedicated to ALL our customers. Currently, our clientele range from mom-and-pop startups, to small batch manufacturers, to large corporations, to some of the biggest name brands you see in gummy edibles on the market today.
Part of my mission is to let others know about their opportunities! With our unique products, anyone can manufacture gummy edibles easily. I take pride in creating win-win opportunities and partnerships. We show folks how anyone can enter the space with little to no risk and minimal investment. In fact, we have seen some of our clients start in their home kitchens, and they are now running fully operating licensed facilities!
We do the hard part for our customers. Working with us, our customers can get their products to market more quickly—without added cost or stress. They don’t need to spend millions of dollars on gummy manufacturing machinery or deal with unreliable or expensive co-manufacturers. And they are always confident they get the highest quality product available.
We are with our customers every step of the way, from our first contact to ongoing service before and after the sale. Candy Pros was built on the philosophy that our customers are like family, and we earn their trust in that same way, whatever the size of their business. As you can tell already, my biggest joy is seeing our customers succeed. It is what keeps me going!
In terms of product, we always capitalize on trends. For example, our Candy Pros’ single-color & flavor gummy baseline has become a staple for manufacturers of edibles. And we continue to innovate.
One of our most recent and most popular products is called Naked Gold. It is a line of colorless, flavorless gummies that is ideal as a base for manufacturing edibles. It provides clients a “blank canvas” to create anything their heart desires! For example, if they want to create a “blue pina colada gummy” or “POG” (passionfruit, orange, guava) flavor for themselves or their clients, they can! This product really allows our gummy manufacturers free rein to create anything imaginable! There is nothing like this on the market, and we truly believe this product sets us apart from the competition. It also allows our clients the opportunity to create endless options. The day we launched our Naked Gold product, we sold out immediately! We knew this product would be incredibly successful, so we prepared ourselves. We produced a virtually endless amount of product to make sure our makers and manufacturers never ran out because you know the saying, “You can’t sell apples out of an empty cart.” We understand this better than most and feel proud that we do!
Just when we thought it couldn’t get any better, it did! Candy Pros will revolutionize the gummy market yet again with the launch of our new Vegan Base Formula. This ground-breaking innovation is still in the pipeline, but rest assured, it will change the world in terms of all the possibilities for our products and our customers. In addition to being a “better for you” vegan product, it will solve the problem of heat-related shipping challenges. Stay tuned!!!
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
Wow. It’s odd to see that question because my entire focus has always been on how I can support OTHERS. It’s hard for me to think of how others can support me. So, I will just say these things: To customers and potential customers: Let me know how I can help you! Let me show you how you can succeed. Let’s keep the lines of communication open, always be honest with each other, and work together.
To the Candy Pros team: Just keep on doing what you are doing. I couldn’t do it without you.
To other entrepreneurs: There will be struggles and challenges, but there are also rich lessons in the journey. Take chances, follow your heart, serve others, and succeed!
To my family, my customers, my team, and my community: Thank you for making me who I am and for helping make Candy Pros so successful. Looking forward to many more years of growth and success for all of us!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.CandyPros.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/candypros/
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/CandyPros
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/susanhallak/
