We recently connected with Gia Holden-!Love and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Gia, thanks for joining us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

My 11 year old special needs daughter Saniyah passed away unexpectedly on July 31,2020 just short of her 12th birthday Aug 31st. At home from a Gran Mal seizure. She was born with a rare disease called Microcephaly which resulted in what Dr’s call the perfect storm- Epilepsy, Cerebral Palsy and autism. Even though she was also non verbal she loved snacks!! One day I had a bag of cotton candy and she grabbed it, stuffed it in her mouth.!She started smiling and looked at me like where did it go? I knew then it was the right snack that was easy for her to enjoy. After that l had to find healthier options and that’s when I figured out how to make it organic. Fast forward. After she she moved to Heaven I decided to keep her legacy alive by creating my 501c3 Non Profit called Run Saniyah Run and Na Na’s Candy Kloudz. We use the sales from our candy to help fund my non profit. RSR assist parents of special needs children through out the state of Delaware with personalized services and resources that help them with their day to day needs that may cause them unnecessary stress!Both of my companies have just been nominated for best new emerging non profit and small business in the state of Delaware and Sussex County in Delaware. We just opened up a fundraising store to compliment our online store and catering. Every time someone purchases our cotton Candy they are experiencing a little taste of Heaven and helping parents in need! Our websites are www.runsaniyahrun.org and www.nanascandykloudz.com.

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?

We make 100% organic cotton candy in over 30 unique flavors – even sugar free cotton candy for diabetics. The sales of our candy is a major contributor to my 501c3 non profit Run Saniyah Run Organization.unfortunately we haven’t received any grants yet so the funds help keep the organization in operation.. I believe what sets us apart is how it started, who Saniyah is and how it helps many families in Delaware. I am so proud that I was able to turn my pain into purpose by keeping her legacy alive and putting so many smiles on special needs children as well as everyone else. Especially those that never like cotton candy. As soon as they try our cotton Candy they are HOOKED!!

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

My journey has been bitter sweet. I would give all this up just to have a few more minutes with my daughter. I miss her so much. I know for certain that she is now living her best life ever. Everything I wanted her to do she is now doing. Walking, talking, etc. I constantly share her story, her journey with whoever has ears to hear. Saniyah was such a blessed to everyone that encountered her. When I share this it fills me with al kinds of emotions. I’m in tears now just writing about her. No matter what I’m going to keep my business thriving because after all it’s in her memory- it’s her legacy.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I come from a sales and marketing career background – specifically in the utility industry. I was a regional sales director for a utility construction company in PA.. A month before my daughter passed away she had to stay 6 weeks in the hospital. It was at that time Covid hit the hardest so I knew I would be able (at least I thought) to stay in the hospital the whole duration of my daughter’s stay and just do my sales call by phone and zoom. Well that didn’t go so well as my sales dropped and I was trying to find excuses why I couldn’t go out to see clients and why I missed certain meetings. The end result was that my position was terminated 2 days before Saniyah passed. The day I was let go it didn’t upset me because I figured that’s more time for me to help Saniyah with her recovery. After Saniyah was laid to rest I had to quickly find another job. While I was interviewing over the phone, I was shopping for headstones. It was the hardest thing to do emotionally, physically as spiritually. I had to pretend all was well not letting the companies I interviewed with know my little girl had just passed away. The good news is I landed a new position as a sales manager for a consulting company. I tried my best to put my all into it for almost a year all while starting my non profit and making my organic cotton candy. That was what brought a little bit of joy into my wounded soul. Then one day once again I was called into their office and they asked how I was doing and why I didn’t seem so interested in my position. I looked at my boss and said I have to be honest, I’m no longer interested in working for any company. I told them I just want to make the best cotton candy ever and help parents of special needs children in my state of Delaware. Have a special needs child and trying to raise other children and balance a full time career is so challenging. It helped me understand that all my efforts to make other companies profitable I can do that for my own company. The same dedication I had throughout Saniyah’s almost 12 years I can do for my own businesses. The best part about this bus once again, keeping my daughter’s memory and legacy alive!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.nanascandyklouds.com
• Instagram: Na Na’s Candy Kloudz
• Facebook: Na Na’s Candy Kloudz and Run Saniyah Run