FREDERICTON — Combining her entrepreneurial aspirations with her passion for healthy eating, Melissa Peña started selling healthy desserts during the pandemic.
MelQui is a no-sugar-added bakery, specializing in gluten-free, keto, and lactose-free products. Peña wants to give more options to people who are trying to eat healthier.
“Starting with desserts, starting with some snacks, it is amazing, because you are adapting small steps so you can have real healthy habits,” said Peña.
She started selling last summer with her business partner and boyfriend Martin Carvajal. The name ‘MelQui’ combines Peña’s nickname with Martin’s home city of Quito, the capital of Ecuador.
Peña moved from Ecuador to Canada for school two years ago. At home, she was used to eating mostly homemade and healthy food.
“When I arrived here in Canada, the food culture-shocked me a lot,” said Peña.
Peña has a major sweet tooth. But when looking for healthier options in Canada, she saw things advertised as healthy still had a lot of added sugar. She started doing research of her own by taking online courses and reading blogs.
During quarantine when her sweet tooth stuck again, she started cooking.
“The first cake that I made tastes totally different than the one that I can make today,” said Peña.
“I love saying that because I think mistakes are part of the process,” said Peña. “I’m not ashamed to say it because that’s how I started and started progressing.”
For the first three months, she used customer feedback to change her product. She tested recipes and tried different ingredients to see what had the best nutritional value and taste.
She has ended up with 20 different products on the menu, from carrot cake to brownies. In her menu, she tries to give a variety to her customers and can change things a product based on an allergy or restriction.
Besides being a business owner, Peña is also a student. She is in her fourth year at St. Thomas University taking economics and business. She admits that balancing school while running a business has been challenging.
“My priorities are my studies, but also a priority that I am adding to my life is my business. So it’s like dividing my time, so it’s sacrificing things, in my case, it’s sacrificing maybe time with my friends or going out sometimes,” said Peña.
“If you want more you need to give more,” said Peña. “That’s a rule that I have applied a lot.”
She describes her first year of running a business in Canada as a learning path.
“Starting a business in a country that is not your country means learning new laws, getting in touch with different people,” said Peña. “It’s learning a lot about the legal process, licensing, so many things.”
She has a selection of products available at 900 Hanwell, where she shares kitchen space with Scottage Cheeze.
For her full menu, customers can order through Instagram or Facebook. Peña hopes to venture into the farmer’s market scene and is planning to launch MelQui’s website later this year.
Peña got her feet wet with in-person events this summer. In August she taught a class with the Ville’s IGen program and was part of NBIF’s Breakthru competition for newcomer businesses.
“Even though we didn’t win, we won many things,” said Peña. “Like connections, and people that reach out to us asking about how we are doing, what we need, what are our plans.”
RELATED: NBIF BreakThru Competition Focusing On Fintech This Year
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Rachel Smith is an intern with Huddle. Send her story suggestions:[email protected].
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