Meet Katherine Wilbur of Woodland Confectionary

Today we’d like to introduce you to Katherine Wilbur.

Hi Katherine, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My name is Katherine Wilbur, and I am from Rockford, IL. I lived in Illinois for most of my life, and started my professional candy journey when I was 16 and worked at Fannie May, a Midwestern staple of fine chocolates. I loved working there, and when I moved away for college, I made a point to seek out the local candy stores in every town to continue working with candy.
Having nearly 20 years of candy experience at the time, I finally created Woodland Confectionary on Halloween of 2018. At first a wintertime side business I developed in between farming seasons of our small vegetable farm, it became a year-round brick and mortar business in its current location February of 2021.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Starting a business is never easy, and I started one with two small children, and moved to my current location during the 2020 pandemic shutdown. I had to install a licensed kitchen since we make confections and foods in-house, which is something I knew nothing about at first. The costs associated with opening and operating a food business from scratch is so much more expensive than opening another type of retail business, and that is something we continue to struggle with.

As you know, we’re big fans of Woodland Confectionary. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Woodland Confectionary is an artisan candy business in Rogers City, MI. We make classic and unique confections, such as caramels, buttercreams, sea foam and truffles, using high quality ingredients that are local and sustainably-produced whenever possible, and never artificial. The majority of our products are gluten-free, and we are proud to also offer dairy-free, nut-free, and sugar-free chocolates as well. If you don’t have a sweet tooth, you’re still likely to find something in our unique nature and vintage inspired gift shop.
I started Woodland Confectionary to bring that happiness to people living in and traveling through Northeast Michigan. I feel passionately about the power of food, being a specialty crop farmer & forager as well as confectioner, and I believe that high quality and natural ingredients are the first steps towards great candies. From buttercreams made with local fruits to caramels that are firm, yet soft, and never sticky, and come in a wide variety of flavors, including chocolate sea salt, apple cider, chai ginger, Earl Grey, and classic vanilla, our confections are made in small batches and bring people back for more year after year.
Woodland Confectionary is open year round, and is also available for online orders and nationwide shipping October-May.

How do you think about happiness?
While there are of course more things that make me happy, I’d have to say that being outside in Nature always brings me a special kind of happiness unmatched in depth and intensity. Working in a candy shop is a close second!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://woodlandconfectionary.com/
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/woodlandconfectionary
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/thewoodlandconfectionary