Meet Candace Green of Candace’s Goodie Jars and More

Today we’d like to introduce you to Candace Green.

Candace, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
A lot of people think that I have been baking all my life, but I have not. I started spending more time in the kitchen and baking in 2014. At the time, I was faced with an unexpected situation that left me broken and I was going through the healing process. I kept overthinking and over analyzing the situation to the point where I needed something to do in order to occupy my time. One day, I decided to make strawberry shortcake and put it in a mason jar and I took a picture of it and posted it on my Instagram page. Shortly after the post, I received a few comments asking if I was selling them because if so, they would buy some. The following week, I ended up selling about 20 mason jar desserts and it’s true when they say word of mouth travels fast because my direct messages began to blow up with people asking if I had any more desserts because they saw where people were posting them and tagging me. I decided to open up orders for the next weekend and ended up making about 60 mason jar desserts. What I thought would be just a one-time thing turned into people asking me every week would I be delivering desserts and I knew then that I wanted and needed to make a business out of what I was doing. I reached out to my cousin Erica Glaze and asked if she could help me come up with a business name and after thinking for a while she said, “What about Candace’s Goodie Jars?” When she said the name, I immediately said that was it, being that I’m a firm believer that ALL things work together for GOOD. I ended up adding “and more” to my business name because I knew eventually I wanted to offer more than just Mason jar desserts and here I am five years later doing just that. Candace’s Goodie Jars and More offers a variety of desserts for special events and occasions.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Absolutely not!! Especially in the beginning. I had no idea what I needed to do in order to start my business, such as what paperwork do I need to file? What licenses do I need to obtain? I spent a lot of hours researching so I could ensure I would have all my ducks in a row. Creating a price list for my product was also a challenge within itself because I wanted to make a profit of course, but also ensure that my services would not be too expensive, but reasonably priced. I had to figure out also how to brand myself, such as creating a logo that not only caught people’s eye but reflected my business. Instagram allowed me to connect with @babeandbutter who is an amazing and talented artist who asked me to describe my business in ten words and from there she created my logo which definitely took some of the stress away in the beginning. Some challenges that I still face are not having enough hours in the day. Being that I am the only one that runs my business, something I get overbooked, which is a blessing, but sometimes I have to turn down some orders. Honestly, I don’t think running a business is ever a constant smooth road, but a smooth road with a few speed bumps here and there.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Candace’s Goodie Jars and More story. Tell us more about the business.
Candace’s Goodie Jars and More is known for the “Goodie Jars”, which are desserts in mason jars, such as banana pudding, red velvet, peach cobbler, strawberry shortcake, and the list goes on. When I first started, I would deliver my Goodie Jars on every first and second Saturday of the month to my customers home or office. Aside from the Goodie Jars, I offer various flavors of cupcakes, cookies, cookie cakes, bundt/pound cakes, and dessert shooters. I believe what sets me apart from others and what I’m most proud of is that about 90% percent of my customers I never knew prior to them purchasing desserts from me. They all found me on social media due to a post that appeared in their timeline or someone tagged them in it. Also, I am HUGE on customer service and love getting to know my customers and building long-lasting relationships with them to the point where when I deliver to them we chat, talk about work, their kids, relationships, and etc. I also bake everything with love and it is my passion. Yes, it generates income, but I don’t do it just for that. There is no greater feeling than hearing the feedback from customers of how much they enjoyed what I baked and created.

Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I don’t believe in luck because when you do you’re implying that future successful events happen randomly as a chance of a result and for me I don’t believe that things randomly happen. I believe that what God has for me is for me. I apply that to my everyday life and my business. If God wants me to have something he will give me the tools I need to obtain it and allow me to have the mindset needed to handle it. If God doesn’t want me to have something then that is just it, it will pass me by either because God doesn’t think I’m ready for it or he has something better for me. I put God first in everything I do and I’m not ashamed of doing so.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @candacesgoodiejarsandmore
• Facebook: Candace’s Goodie Jars and More
• Email: Goodiejarsaz@yahoo.com

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