Sweet success

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This article was published 12/01/2024 (1005 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeg’s first-of-its-kind gourmet marshmallow shop is open for business, and it comes with a side of freeze-dried candy.

Inside 771 Selkirk Ave., Brandon Desrosiers concocts marshmallow recipes — honey dill, strawberry cheesecake and raspberry white chocolate chip.

The finished products are sold steps away in The Marshmallow Factory’s Selkirk Avenue storefront.

“It’s been a whirlwind,” exclaimed Dena Desrosiers, Brandon’s wife and business partner.

The family launched their candy company at a craft show in November 2022. Over the next year, the Desrosiers developed new flavours and sales grew.

The Free Press wrote a business profile about The Marshmallow Factory when it started selling its products in Manitoba shops.

At the time, Brandon would make his desserts in a chicken restaurant’s kitchen during off hours —meaning, he’d shuffle around from midnight to 6 a.m., as per his deal with the owner.

“I was helping him out, he was helping me out,” said Jeanpaul Champagne, owner of The Crispy Wing on Notre Dame Avenue.

Champagne met the Desrosiers through a mutual friend. Brandon, a home renovator by trade, helped with some of The Crispy Wing’s maintenance while paying rent.

In return, he could set up his four stand mixers in the dead of night and churn out marshmallows.

It was a bit of a process, Dena noted: Brandon lugged the kitchen equipment home and back, and finished marshmallows filled shelf space in their house. Brandon was transient while making about 1,500 marshmallows a week.

Then Champagne bought 771 Selkirk Ave. He didn’t plan to convert the building to another Crispy Wing.

“I just said, ‘Hey, you know what, why don’t you guys take over this building?’” Champagne recalled. “They’re awesome marshmallows.”

It made sense for The Marshmallow Factory to have its own storefront, given its growth, he added. People were buying online, at markets and in a handful of small retailers in Manitoba, British Columbia and Alberta.

The Desrosiers agreed to rent the Selkirk Avenue space and, at the end of 2023, began renovating.

The faces behind Freezed, a local freeze-dried candy operation, pitched in with renos. Nicole Swarychewski and her husband had previously become friends with the Desrosiers through markets.

Swarychewski bought her first freeze dryer during the COVID-19 pandemic “because, you know, the end of the world was coming.”

“I didn’t know if the candy market was going to stay lucrative, so I didn’t go all in right off the bat. I kind of wish I had,” she said.

Family, friends and social media groups made up her clientele until she entered markets.

Now Freezed and The Marshmallow Factory make their wares in the same kitchen and sell them in the same store. Both pay rent. Swarychewski and her husband take the evening shift, freeze drying Skittles and other snacks, while Brandon pours marshmallows during the day.

The store opened on Dec. 29. Dena plans to host a launch event sometime this month.

“It’s a good start for us all,” Swarychewski remarked. “Eventually, obviously, everybody wants more space, but for right now, it’s perfect.”

Being in the 300 square-foot shop on Selkirk Avenue brings its own challenges, including attracting customers, Dena noted.

“Selkirk Avenue has not had the greatest history over the last number of years. We’re hoping that being on Selkirk, and people coming down and seeing that it’s not so bad, help trigger more businesses to Selkirk Avenue in general,” she said.

The Selkirk Avenue BIZ’s website showcases 49 businesses along the strip. Gunn’s Bakery and Donut House are popular sweets-selling neighbours.

Dena aspires to open more Marshmallow Factory locations, including one with a café setting.

“We want to be like the Oh Doughnuts of marshmallows,” she said.

The Marshmallow Factory will continue selling online and at markets; the Desrosiers’ children, nephew and eldest son’s girlfriend all help with the business.

The Selkirk Avenue location opens on Fridays from 4 to 8 p.m. and weekends from 12 to 6 p.m. Hours may increase as summer approaches.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com