We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Alishia Richardson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alishia, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We love asking folks what they would do differently if they were starting today – how they would speed up the process, etc. We’d love to hear how you would set everything up if you were to start from step 1 today

If I were starting today, I’d definitely focus on getting things out there faster and building momentum. Perfection can be a trap for new businesses, so prioritizing promotion and getting real-world feedback would be key.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

In the heart of the pandemic, when baking became a way to connect and share a little joy, we stumbled upon a sweet surprise. Our now COO, Keyana and I planned a weekend in the mountains and during our time away we snacked on candied pecans. What was supposed to last us through the weekend was gone in one afternoon – they were THAT good. My love language has always been baking, so upon our return, I decided to experiment with candied pecans and threw in some exciting flavors. What started as a Christmas gift for friends turned into an unexpected delight. Their enthusiastic requests for more (even without formal packaging and branding) really showed us that we had something on our hands. It was then that I really started asking the question, Could this be something special?

Fast forward to late nights spent perfecting the recipe and countless “Can I buy these?” – in August of 2021 Pecandy was born. Three years later with over a thousand orders and happy customers, it’s clear that pecans CAN be special after all. Our hope is to share a little bit of that joy we experienced after the very first batch we made. With Pecandy, we really want to offer you more than just a snack; we want to offer a reminder of the simple pleasures that can brighten even the toughest days.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

Our best source of new clients has been participating in markets, pop-ups, and festivals. It allows us to meet our customers face-to-face, which fosters a strong connection and builds brand loyalty. We get valuable real-time feedback on our products, and it’s amazing to see customers excited to share Pecandy with their friends and family. This personal interaction creates a passionate community around our brand.

How did you build your audience on social media?

Building our audience on social media has been all about creating a sense of community. We share a lot of behind-the-scenes content, from recipe development to brainstorming sessions. This transparency allows our followers to feel connected to the brand. We also actively encourage user-generated content by featuring customer photos on our feed and stories. This two-way street of content creation fosters engagement and authenticity.

Our biggest piece of advice for anyone starting out on social media? Don’t get hung up on creating perfect content. Focus on being consistent with your posting and showing up for your audience. Even simple, authentic posts can resonate with people if they feel a connection to the brand and the faces behind it.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.pecandy.co
• Instagram: @pecandy.co