Everyone's Favorite Sweet Shoppe!

A beloved local candy shoppe is the dream of lifetime Carnegie resident, Nina Midgley Kelman.

Owner Nina Midgley Kelman whipping up her delicious treats.

When Nina and her parents took over My Favorite Sweet Shoppe in 2014, they had no previous business experience and received very little direction from the shoppe’s previous owners. What they did have, was a great recipe, and Nina’s experience of making homemade chocolates and baked goods with her grandmother. In fact, the store still uses some of her grandmother’s chocolate molds for their creations. 

The proof is in the pudding, or in this case the candy, and the shoppe’s reputation for great-tasting treats grew and began to draw visitors from all over the region. 

“I will always love seeing happy customers in our shoppe, especially the little kiddos!” says Nina. “We have fun at the shoppe, creating new things and trying out new recipes.”

The business has also been a blessing for her family with her flexible work schedule. “I’m very lucky that I’m able to be present at my job and at home with my kids. Much of that is due to my amazing team at the shoppe.” 

There are challenges at times to owning your own business. Opening the store was a leap of faith and continues to be. The shoppe sees a flood of customers during the holidays, and then there are times that can be very slow in between. Nina and her team are always working trying to bring in more customers during those times. Fortunately, great candy is a wonderful splurge that can be enjoyed anytime. And since the shoppe offers corporate gifts, party favors for birthdays and weddings, and has private chocolate parties for kids, it helps to round out the demand. They’ve also been quite active in producing products for fundraising for organizations. 

Currently, My Favorite Sweet Shoppe has candy in several stores around the area, but they are also working closely with some other companies which will sell their products to customers outside of our region. This is an exciting development for any business, but especially a candy shop which started as a small family business. Nina credits their success on the support of the neighborhood and the community. She believes in the Main Street neighborhood has purchased a building for their business amongst the many charming specialty shops and services of the area. 

Nina has encouraging words for other would-be entrepreneurs. “if you have the support and want to pursue your dream of entrepreneurship—just go for it!  You don’t always have to have it all figured out to start, just take baby steps toward making your dream a reality. Don’t feel any pressure to be perfect, because nothing is perfect.

Small business has often been credited as the “backbone of our economy.” These are the businesses that will not move overseas or eliminate employees with mass automation. Nina agrees. “It is so important for everyone to support local small business. It would be such a sad place without all the unique shops that make up our local communities. We’d love for everyone to stop by and try us out. We love what we do! It’s that simple.

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