Business Profile: Gummi Boutique

Sweet tooth enthusiasts rejoice

Caelen Haney knows a sweet business deal when he tastes it.

Sweet tooth enthusiasts rejoiced when the Gummi Boutique opened their Centre Avenue location in November 2021. Caelen and father Gary Haney, a business broker, saw the opportunity to sink their teeth into the sugar-treat trade.

"Our three main brands are candy, soda and ice cream. We bring in lots of imports – most of our products are things you can't find locally, but we carry a few local favourites," says the young entrepreneur, Caelen who focuses on the nostalgia factor with sweets popular from the 1950's-1990's, and hard to find confectionaries.

With a Calgary store already under their liquorice belt, expanding to Airdrie was a natural progression for the sweet shop as the father-son duo have plenty of roots in Airdrie's growing community.

"I grew up in Airdrie and lived here about 20 years. So, it's a community that I'm very familiar with and I know how much people show up for each other. We've already seen that and have had some great support."

Filling the shelves of their new business was as easy as stealing candy from a baby. The Gummi Boutique was up and running sooner then they anticipated.

"It went very smoothly. We've had fantastic support through the City themselves, and great business location," added Caelen.

The boutique offers plenty of imported goodies from Japan, Mexico, Germany and Britain, unique carbonated beverages, a plethora of jelly beans, freeze dried candy for a special crunch, and of course several different namesake gummy delights including a whopping five pound (2.3 kilogram) World's Largest Gummy Bear.

"Around Christmas we can't keep them in stock. It always seems to be the aunts, uncles and grandparents that buy those, never the parents," added Caelen with a chuckle.

Apart from custom milkshakes and piñatas, the bonbon barons will also take the candy show on the road offering cotton candy, snow cone and candy buffet rentals for birthdays, celebrations and special events.

"We've had a lot people spreading the word for us, and social media in Airdrie has been great and very supportive."

Visit Gummi Boutique at 101 500 Centre Ave E to alleviate your sugar cravings, or visit their website or Facebook page for more information.

Story and photography by Carl Patzel