Today we’d like to introduce you to Karen Gwynne.
Hi Karen, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My husband, Geoff, and I started making candied pecans for our family as Christmas gifts in 1990. As our three boys were added to the family, they helped as they were able. Fast forward 25 years. Just weeks after high school graduation, our son Jacob landed badly in a foam pit at a trampoline park, averting paralysis, but fracturing 4 vertebrae. He was in a halo and then a neck brace for 6 months after surgery. Long story short, he deferred his college plans a year, but he had some extra time once he had healed. Being a baseball player, he got connected with Nextlvl Sports in Atlanta Georgia, a high-level baseball organization instructing youth in baseball, faith and character development. He became their first Volunteer Intern. The volunteer part required a need to raise money, so I suggested he “sell those pecans we’ve been baking all these years”. Well, he did, and we discovered that people really liked our pecans! Two things happened next. First, Jacob left for Georgia, and he hasn’t looked back. He interned there every summer of college, and at graduation become the Director of Baseball Operations. He has since left Nextlvl and is now a professional hitting instructor and the owner of Yes Yes Training in NW Atlanta.
The second thing that happened was that I looked at my husband and said, “We’re gonna have three kids in college at once. Maybe I could make a little business out of this!” I soon signed up at a church craft fair, and by the end of the two-day event, I had sold 150 jars of candied pecans and had been dubbed “the nut lady”. I began as a Cottage Food Business, but now I have a Food Manufacturer’s License. I bake in a Commercial Kitchen. (That’s a whole other story – it’s called The Abundant Harvest Kitchen in Spring, Texas. Totally worth the hour’s drive. They operate a food bank and a “pay as you can” cafe, and I hire folks who otherwise might have trouble finding work. I love supporting their vision)
Also at the beginning of the business, I was volunteering for Unbound, a local non-profit in the Houston area working to end Human Trafficking. When my husband and I decided to donate 10% of our business profits, it was natural to give to Unbound. I had no idea then the kind of platform I would soon have to raise awareness and even educate people about human trafficking in our city. I probably did a total of 6 events my first year. Now I do twice that in an average month. It just slowly grew each year, until I decided to quit my “day job” last August to do this full-time. While I do have a website for online selling and shipping, most of my selling is at markets where I am face-to-face with my customers. I am sometimes tempted to expand my online presence, but I have decided to focus on the in-person markets due to the impact our business is having as a community advocate for Unbound.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I didn’t set out to “start a business” really. It wasn’t until I noticed that our sales were doubling every year that I thought maybe I should start paying attention. Once I got excited about growing, I needed to figure out how to get into regular markets – like Farmer’s Markets. Thankfully, the niece of the owner of Rio Grande Organics, a pecan farm in Crystal City Texas, was told I made the “best candied pecans ever” and she contacted me for an order. In short, we cut a deal – I candied pecans for her, and she made it possible for me to started buying Rio Grande pecans. This allowed me to sell at local markets weekly.
But with growth comes responsibility. Now I’m buying LOTS of sugar. I learned that people are still labor trafficked on sugar plantations in the Dominican Republic and Haiti. To be consistent in my fight against human trafficking, I decided to purchase ethically sourced organic cane sugar. It’s a small decision, but it’s important to me, as is paying extra for eco-friendly packaging.
Then, of course, Covid put a wrench into everyone’s plans. Ughh! I was fortunate to be able to sell at Farmer’s Markets, so I really can’t complain.
I’ve struggled with the business side of things – I’m pretty low-tech. But I’ve learned what I’m good at and I pay people to do what I’m not good at (like manage my website). I’ve mostly kept things simple. I highly suggest to anyone starting up a small business to contact the Small Business Development Center in their county – it’s free and my advisor was a huge help.
I can think of really bummer times – like when it’s windy and rainy, and my product is getting wet, and your tent breaks, and my back hurts from standing all day, and no one is there to buy anything, and I have to huddle under plastic and keep repeating “but I love being my own boss”. But those times are few and far between.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Well, first of all, I’m still a little in shock that I’m filling all of this out for this magazine. It’s making me think about why in the world am I being recognized for just selling a candied pecan? What I’m coming up with is this – when I am selling, I always offer a sample of our product. I say “would you like to try a homemade candied pecan?” And then, I basically go into a sales pitch. But then all kinds of things happened. Sometimes I hear a childhood pecan story. Sometimes I hear frustrations over the squirrels eating all of this year’s crop. Sometimes a mom will share a recent story about a human trafficking bust and the fears she has for her daughter. And sometimes I make a sale. I think people really like our pecans – and they are delicious. But I also think some people are in need of a listening ear. And I enjoy hearing people’s stories. The business becomes less transactional and has the possibility of becoming transformational.
I mentioned earlier that I try to keep things simple. Many people ask if we do any other kinds of nuts or any other flavors than cinnamon sugar. The answer is no. Not only do I think we have a good thing going with this tried and true 32-year recipe, but folks have so many decisions to make in their daily lives, I don’t need to ask them to use their brain power at my booth to decide which pecan to purchase. Our display is uncluttered and simple with one product in various packages. I’ve been tempted to broaden it, but so far our only variation is the sugar-free option, which is actually incredibly popular.
We have started branching out to wholesale our product, and I’m sticking with coffee shops, because they foster a similar in-person, community feel that Pecans by Karen values.
I think what might be notable or inspiring about our story is that it’s just doing the next best thing. I believe we are making a difference – in the community through our giving to Unbound, in our business decisions to purchase ethically sourced or eco-friendly, and in the lives of ordinary people at our markets – one conversation or decision at a time. It’s really just by doing what’s in front of us, and anybody can do that.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
My family for sure, especially my husband. My husband is an Episcopal Priest, and we have considered ourselves ministry partners for 32 years. Now the tables have turned, and he is my main business partner and best market employee. Sometimes we sell together, but we definitely brainstorm together, and I can bounce all my ideas off of him.
I was initially inspired by our son Jacob, who sat in our kitchen baking batch after batch of pecans and putting ribbons on jars, so he could do something bigger than himself by serving others. He often has parents telling him of the difference he is making in their child’s life – and that’s not just in baseball.
I also had a very good friend at the beginning of the business when I really just thought of it as a side gig. Lori often had big ideas, but she also did practical things for me, like buying me a unique money pouch for selling that I get so many compliments on. She sadly passed away from cancer several years ago. She would be so proud to see what has become of the business.
A shout out to my fellow small business owners and market vendors…I have been inspired by these creative, innovative, determined, hard working and generous people as we have sold our goods side by side at Houston area markets. We encourage one another, help carry heavy loads, give knowing glances on hot humid days, and build one another up when it’s clear we need it.
I LOVE my customers. It’s such a great thing to have people return and tell you about how they, too, are giving these pecans as gifts to their family and friends. They eat them for themselves too, but I love the gift-giving part, because that’s how we started.
Pricing:
- Window Bag of Candied Pecans $12
- Ribboned Cone of Candied Pecans $14
- Ribboned Mason Jar Candied Pecans $15
- Sugar Free Window Bag Candied Pecans $15
- Sugar Free Ribboned Jar Candied Pecans $18
Contact Info:
- Website: http://pecansbykaren.com/
- Instagram: @pecansbykaren
- Facebook: PecansbyKaren
