Did you know that over 40 billion plastic utensils alone are dumped into landfills every year just in North America? Putting them one after another, this would make a path to the Moon and back EIGHT times! The founder of Candy Cutlery, Lyn Chen told us about the sweet ways she is fighting for her beliefs. Read more to learn about how you can make saving the environment your business too.
Q: Can you introduce yourself and your business to us?
My name is Lyn Chen, and I am a third-year economics student here at Queen’s. I’m super passionate about two things: environmental sustainability and getting more women into STEM!
My company is called TUF Candy Inc., and I'm currently working on the premier line of products called Candy Cutlery. We have a very innovative approach to decreasing the use of consumer plastics by using food and food waste solutions. That is our mandate, no matter what we do. Our first product is the Candy Cutlery Line, which is confectionery utensils. We are also looking into other materials that will help replace plastics and find solutions to reduce plastic use beyond utensils.
Q: What is your outlook for the future
I see us moving more into the materials space, rather than a one-off product. My mission has always been to reduce plastic use. The Candy Cutlery Line was actually more of a prototype/proof of concept. We were really surprised when it blew up the way it did!
We are in the right position to invent solutions the world hasn’t seen before to replace plastics. That is our big overarching goal, and I would love to see that dream come true one day.
Q: How was the idea born?
In 2016, right before I went to university, I saw my mom in the kitchen washing some plastic cutlery. When I asked her what she was doing, she told me that she was trying to save the environment and that just because it was a disposable fork doesn’t mean it could only be used once. I found that really interesting, and it got me thinking about how much plastic waste was around us.
I did some research and found that over 40 billion plastic utensils alone are dumped into landfills every year just in North America. I knew there was a huge problem here, I just wasn’t sure how I could solve it yet. When I started thinking outside the box, I came up with the idea to make cutlery out of confectionery candy, rather than traditional plastics that would end up in landfills.
Initially, we were in the startup phase where we had no money, no connections, and even no product. I was a kid, I really had no idea what to do. I started going to pitch competitions and refined my idea before I eventually got my chance and raised a little bit of money to try and make my dream a reality. I worked with the 3D printers at Sparq Studios on campus to design my prototypes. Then I found a Martha Stewart recipe online and said: “Let’s do this!” I made a Wix website and started promoting it, but not too seriously yet.
Then one day one of the largest law firms in the world contacted me about supplying them with 600 sets of utensils for their staff appreciation day. I started freaking out! I wasn’t even sure how I would make so many, because there was no kitchen I could bake in Vic hall where I was living. So I started reaching out to upper year students to see if I could borrow their kitchen for a day or two to fulfill this order. Thank God, someone said yes. I spent the next two nights in the kitchen, studying for my economics exam while making candy. I was literally working in the kitchen from 10 pm to 4 am, then I would get a couple hours of sleep, get up for class and do the same thing over again.
Q: How did you manage the explosive growth of Candy Cutlery while still in school?
I think the key to a sustainable business is about having the right team to do it. When I first pitched the idea at a competition, I pitched with 5 other people. I couldn't have predicted then that they would all eventually drop out for various reasons and it was definitely an emotional revelation for me. I thought, if I couldn't convince people to be on my team, how could I convince someone to be a customer? This is why I feel fortunate to have met my co-founders, Daniel and Liyan. They are so amazing to work with, we have complementary skills, and we're all super passionate about food! We also have the best mentors who we can turn to for advice and support.
Q: How do you market Candy Cutlery? What tactics are most successful?
We are still learning about how to best market our products. We pivot around from idea to idea and strategy to strategy, testing each of them small-scale before we invest in them.
So far we have been doing a lot of unpaid advertising by reaching out to companies we want to work with. Someone from our team would send them samples, reach out on social media, and really just get them to notice us. Social selling has been a pretty big part of our growth, because of how original our product is. It gives us an opportunity to show off our product to our customers and end users, and generate some interest.
Another strategy we use is to reach out to PR groups. We started doing that this past summer and were able to get some free press from a Global News, CTV and a bunch of others. summer, and were able to get some free press from a Global News, CTV and a bunch of others.
Q: What is your favorite aspect of entrepreneurship?
I would definitely have to say the people. My mentors, my co-founders, the end users, our customers. They have all really impacted my life so positively. Everyone is so welcoming, it really never feels like I’m alone.
Q: What are some tips you have for aspiring entrepreneurs?
My first tip is to make sure you are really passionate about the problem you're trying to solve. It's difficult to start up any business and it's especially hard if there aren't any monetary incentives in the beginning. Money can't be the main motivator, passion should be!
My second tip is to be a combination of persistence and coachability. Your first prototype might suck and there might be people who doubt you but please don't give up if you feel that there's something there. Be focused but be open to feedback (especially criticism) and be open to exploring new ideas.
The entrepreneurship community is all about giving back and helping each other out. If there's anyone out there with an idea they'd like to chat about, I'd be happy to listen! Lyn@candycutlery.com :)