In a previous life, Pam Stone worked as a political consultant. It’s a unique sort of job, one that adheres to rigid messaging and also demands creativity. It’s a rough and tumble world, the type that could drag on the heartiest of souls. Then she started making edible flowers. It’s a drastic change, to say the least. How does that happen? It wasn’t through analyzing markets and finding a need, which Stone has done since. It wasn’t about a venture capital fund, either. “I just loved how they looked in salads,” Stone says.
And that, it turns out, was enough for Stone to quit her job and start Farm Candy, which sells edible flowers and herbs. At first, Stone started “very small, with just salt and sugars”. However, one doesn’t go into business for ones own self by sticking with salt and sugars. “I get to experiment now,” Stone says. “I’m always experimenting”. This results have been surprising at times, resulting in flavors like strawberry sriracha, which has become a top seller. And on top of those, she’s added coffees and teas.
In a similar fashion, she’s taking a surprising stance on where to sell her product: as opposed to the traditional brick-and-mortar or the new, but lower visibility online store, Stone has been working within a series of pop-up shops. These allow her greater mobility without the overhead or staff of her own store. “It’s been a great way to get my name out there, get my product out there, without the pain of logisitics” Stone says. She has plenty of her own logistics to deal with, considered how she works withfarms across the country in California. One does olive oil for Farm Candy, the other does vinegar. These help with “interesting flavor profiles, like cilantro jalapeno extra virgin olive oil, flavors you don’t normally see that work really well together”.
Beyond the strawberry sriracha, Stone hasn’t seen a clear fan favorite among her varieties. “They’re all selling very well,” she says. For the future? She’s planning to double on everything: more pop-ups, more expansion, possibly to butters. The next real step is figure out how to scale the dang thing, either retail or wholesale. Those are problems you’ll never find spinning for politicians, that’s for sure.
Join us December 6th & 7th at WeWork Bryant Park for a festive weekend of holiday shopping at our Holiday Market! Shoppers will find a variety of outstanding goods sold exclusively by WeWork members, including Farm Candy.