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

Hi Blakley, thanks for joining us today. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?

When I first considered starting a cotton candy business, I was unsure what to call it. I went through many different ideas, reaching out to friends and family for their input also. Here in the South, you will find that many people, specifically in the older generation, call everyone “Sugar” or “Darlin'”, so I wanted to do a play on these words, while also identifying the main ingredient that I sell. Finally, I settled on Hey, Sugar, and I consulted with a business adviser who helped me verify that the name had not been taken yet.

Blakley, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Hey, Sugar! My name is Blakley, and I am a wife and mother to three children. I worked as a social worker for many years, and loved that job, however my husband and I felt the Lord leading us in a different direction for our family. We decided that I would stay home with our children, but I wanted to do something fun in my spare time that would bring in extra income for our family. I know it sounds crazy, but I kept coming back to cotton candy. It is just such a fun treat that everyone enjoys, and there is so much variety now in the business. I talked to my husband about it, and he encouraged me to go for it. I had already completed my cottage food approval, so I reached out to the health department for my county to let them know I would be selling cotton candy, and confirmed that I was doing everything properly. I initially wanted to spin cotton candy live for events, and even had my husband design a cart for me, but we eventually landed on doing the prepackaged goods for now, due to the freedom this provides with my schedule. Packaging has been the biggest hurdle for me, as I want to deliver a premium product that will last longer than a few hours once it has been spun. At first, we tried bagging our cotton candy for events, but the heat and humidity here in Alabama is brutal, and this did not allow us to provide a premium product. I have now found that deli tubs work best and last longer, so we use these for most of our products. My favorite product we sell is the cotton candy cake. Everyone loves these, and they are delicious and so fun.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

My social media audience is growing day by day, and it just comes with me sharing my posts on my personal page, and friends doing the same to promote my business. I have noticed that each time a friend tags me in a post with my products, I gain new followers. I also do giveways, and remain active on my page to let everyone know when I have new products. For those of you just getting started, ask your friends to support you by sharing your page. This costs them nothing, but it can be very beneficial when it comes to growing your business. Also, do a giveway…Even if it is just something small you are giving away, it will encourage others to share your post. You never know who may be looking for your product and see it when someone else shares your page.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Word of mouth. Each time someone hosts a birthday party and has one of my cakes there, people love it. They just think it is such a fun and unique idea, and usually I will receive an order for their own child’s birthday. I love to hear when others are enjoying my products. Creating something that people enjoy has to be the best part of the business.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @hey_sugar_cottoncandy
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/heysugarbirmingham