Madeleine Brason never planned to open a candy shop — let alone one that would draw lines of people down the street just days after opening.
Two months into running her South End storefront, the 29-year-old founder of Madeleine’s Candy Shop is still catching her breath.
“It’s been crazy, beyond what I ever expected, beyond all my wildest dreams,” Brason said. “But now that I know I can do this, I feel motivated and propelled to continue on this crazy train and really become a staple in the community.”
Madeleine’s Candy Shop, located at 47 Clarendon St., is a pick-and-mix candy shop selling a variety of Swedish candies.
After graduating college in 2018 with a degree in French and dreams of going to medical school, Brason spent nearly seven years working in public health and clinical research.
However, after working from home and feeling the “post-COVID fatigue,” Brason said she was ready for a change.
That change? Opening a candy shop.
“I just love candy, and there wasn’t anything around,” Brason said. “Rather than ordering BonBon online, why didn’t I just open my own store?”
Barason said BonBon, a Swedish sweet shop in Brooklyn, New York, was a “massive inspiration.” The Swedish candy craze started last spring when New York marketer Marygrace Graves recorded herself visiting BonBon.
The sweets have only gotten more popular since then, enough so that some stores in the U.S. are reportedly running out of supply.
To promote the store, Brason relied on social media and online word-of-mouth rather than traditional advertising.
“I’m not really at a point right now where I feel it’s necessary to pay for ads just because everything has happened so organically,” she said.
Brason said part of the reason her store became so popular was a brand identity that let her voice shine through.
“If it’s going to be your business and your name is on the place, then you need to really insert yourself and make sure that it’s you and your voices shining through,” she said. “I was fortunate enough that I was able to do this all by myself … It was, luckily, well-received.”
Customer Riley Jordan found out about the store through TikTok and was attracted to it because she wanted to support a small business in Boston.
“I know it’s hard to start a business in Boston and get storefront space,” Jordan said. “I want to come out and see whatever someone’s investing in in our area.”
Despite Brason’s lack of business experience, she said, “packaging is so key,” and that the store’s blue bags have become a marketing tool.
“[The store’s] color-coordinated. I thought that was fun,” customer Camille Showland said. “I like that they had different sour candies and different flavors and colors.”
Jordan enjoyed the shop’s unique approach to the candy experience, such as giving out chopsticks to eat sweets with and featuring a wide range of countries.
“I like the innovation that they’ve brought into it,” she said. “[It’s] a new, fresh approach and just a sweet treat.”
As one of the first Swedish candy stores in Boston, Madeleine’s is not immune to skyrocketing demand.
“Customers would tell me that there was discourse happening at the [candy] bin, and people getting in fights,” Brason said.
For some, Swedish candy is a familiar experience Madeleine’s is bringing to Boston. Showland, a self-described fan of Swedish candy, highlighted how customizable the experience is.
“It’s like pick-and-mix,” she said. “You pick out the specific things that you want, and then you can create your own selection.”
Though for Jordan, a first time visitor, the shop has something quite literally new in store.
“We’re about to [have Swedish candy],” she said. “We’re excited about it.”
