How a Halifax woman turned a treat-making hobby into a side hustle

Nova Scotia baker Brianne Curry makes desserts and drinks that look almost too good to eat.

Brianna Currie decided to turn her passion into a side hustle. She does chocolate-dipped treats and dessert tables in Halifax.

“I started mostly at home just for fun. It was more like a hobby I like,” she says. “I like art in general… and making cute little themes and stuff. I used to do that for just for fun, for myself and for pictures.”

But things changed when she helped a friend out.

“Then this year I did a table for a friend’s wedding, and people seemed to really think that I had something potential. And so, I decided that you know what? I’m going to quit my second job and kind of focus on this, maybe, make it more like a business,” says Currie. “That’s how I started, and that’s how I’m still starting.”

She took the leap around a month ago, and says she’s been quickly getting everything in order.

This weekend she’s doing a soft launch of her business for friends and family, getting more content to show her creations and reactions online.

She says she’s focused on making something her own.

“I find looking at someone else’s work and then trying to do something similar is really hard for me,” she explained. For her friends wedding, she aimed to make something they would like along the same colour palette and spring theme of the ceremony.

“Then, I kind of just go all out and look for colours and flowers and all that, and then just put it together and make it work.”

For the products she uses in her decorations, she makes sure the balance works. She uses Rice Krispies and pretzels for a touch of saltiness.

“I go with low-risk items, like, shelf stable, because I am working from my home kitchen,” she said. “I also look at other creators who do the same thing online from different parts of the world.”

Currie makes the cake pops herself; she learned designs from school and people she’s followed online.

“But I’d say mainly it’s from my head,” she adds.

She creates entire tables for special occasions.

“I do drinks as well, non-alcoholic drinks. So, depending on what they like as well, it’s mostly like mocktails. And then I decorate that too. And then it’s all part of the table setup,” she adds.

As for feedback from the community, her tables are a hit.

“A lot of people have told me you should do this as a business, my family has been my main point of reference for all the feedback, my friends and I have gotten a lot of love and interest shown from my Instagram,” Currie explains.

She does have partners in business, too. Her passion turns treats into moments, which she loves to see.

“I really enjoy weddings just because it’s a bit of a luxury to it. And I can just kind of do my thing. But then I would say for the treats itself, I really enjoy baby showers for some reason,” she smiles.

She will also be collaborating with Better in Boxes Charcuterie and is hoping to one day open a store.

“That is the dream,” she laughed. “And I am going to fight tooth and the nail to see what I can do.”

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