History and How to Increase Sales in Your Confectionery Shop

Published on: 15 August 2021 Last Updated on: 10 January 2025

The skill of molding confections is known as Confectionery. What are confections? These are food products that are made of carbohydrates and sugar abundantly. A store that engages in producing and selling these delicacies is called a Confectionery shop.

The main target market of these goods is children. Young ones have a big love for candy as they consume them in a substantial number. A confectionery store has different names depending on the geographical area.

In Australia, it is known as a lolly shop, a sweet shop in the United Kingdom, and North Americans call it a candy shop. Despite the different names, all of them produce and sell the same goods.

Well, there are a lot of ways to increase your sales, but you could try these out and find out just how effective they are.

History

Initially, confections were made out of honey as sugar was not readily available in the foregone western world. The Romans, Chinese, Egyptians, Indians, and the Greeks used honey to cover flowers and fruits to conserve them and produce sweetmeats in ancient times.

Between the 4th and 6th centuries BC, Persians and the Greeks engaged Indians to produce “reeds that produce honey without bees,” which is sugarcane. The cane is primeval in Southeast Asia and the tropical Indian subcontinent.

Sugarcane agriculture was advanced and spread afterward. With the introduction of sugar, confectioners gradually started renouncing honey in the production of confections. The Indians came up with a mechanism to create sugar crystals.

In the local dialect, the crystals were known as khanda, where the name candy originated. Kransekake is one of the ancient confections from Scandinavia.

According to Guinness World Records, the most ancient candy shop in the world that is still functioning to date is located in Pateley Bridge village. Pateley Bridge is now a small market town in England. Read more here https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zm2q4xs.

What is in a Confectionery Shop

As explained above, a confectionery store engages in producing and selling confections mostly to the kids. The produced confections in a Confectionery store can be fractionated into two, bakers and sugar confections.

Baker’s Confectionery

It is one of the confectioneries and is also known as flour confections. These are sugary foodstuffs that use flour as their major component.

After they are made, these confections are baked hence the name baker’s Confectionery. They include sweet pastries, scones, cookies, doughnuts, and cakes.

However, baker’s confections are baked, bread is not considered as a baker’s confectionery.

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Sugar Confectionery

Unlike baker’s, sugar confectionery is mainly made of sugar. The most crucial substances used in this category are glucose syrups, sucrose, and invert sugars.

A concoction of fructose and glucose, which is turned out by hydrolysis of sucrose, is called invert sugar. Confectioner’s glucose is also known as glucose syrups which are intensive, cleansed, aqueous solutions of nutritious saccharides from starch.

This confectionery can be divided into two, fondant and boiled sweets. Click here to see how you can start this business.

a) Fodant

Fondant is tiny sugar crystals in concentrated sugar syrup. It is used in embellishing cakes and as a creamy filling in biscuits and chocolates.

Fondant is manufactured in two ways. It is an inverting agent and refrigerating speedily while riveting or mixing sugar solution with glucose syrup then boiling them. The sugar in fondants is in a crystalline state.

These foodstuffs include coconut paste, chocolate centers, marzipan, fudge, and chews. The articulation of fondant is made up of 22% w/w water, 16% w/w confectioner’s glucose, and 62% w/w sucrose. Sucrose is the primary component in this formulation.

b) Boiled Sweets

Boiled sweets are made by boiling water and sugar at extremely high temperatures ranging between 150 and 166 degrees Celsius.

When boiling, the water evaporates, and a translucent mass is formed on cooling. In boiled sweets, their sugar is in a glassy state as it is hard-boiled.

This confectionery includes barley sugars, caramel, fruit drops, toffee, butterscotch, and hard gums. The articulation of boiled sweets comprises 20% w/w water, 32% w/w glucose syrup, and 48% w/w sucrose.

Three Essential Tips on How to Increase the Volume Sales in Your Confectionery Shop

The core obligation of any business enterprise is making profits. A huge amount of gain is obtained through more sales for your confection. So how do you increase the volume of your sales?

1. Location

The most fundamental factor in this business is where you set up your shop. Children are primary consumers of confections as they take them in huge numbers.

To escalate the number of your sales, your shop should be set up in a location where there are more children than adults. An outlet erected in an area where kids are innumerable will make more sales than the other in a setting with scarce younger ones.

A store that is put up in an area where there are more adults than the kids will hardly make sales as the main market target of confections is youngsters.

2. Delivery Services

The world is evolving so are the buying behaviors from customers. Many people do not like making long queues to be served. Instead, they prefer home delivery services.

With the pandemic, many people refrained from going to stores physically to contract the virus in your maneuvers. Many people are adopting online shopping where you order goods online, and the buyer delivers at your doorstep.

If you can incorporate delivery services, you will attract the attention of potential customers who do not like going out to the stores. This increases the volume of sales, which means more profit.

3. Social Media

The most convenient way to market your products in the 21st century is through social media. There are a million users of social media all over the world.

Advertisements of your shop can be run on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tiktok, LinkedIn, to mention a few.

Through social media, you can reach many potential customers for your product in the comfort of your store. See this link to learn how you can market your business using social media https://www.marketingdonut.co.uk/social-media/social-media-strategy/use-social-media-to-market-your-business.

Conclusion

Confectionery shops produce and sell confection. Before purchasing from any store, research to establish if they produce the best products in town. The duration a store has operated means they have experience in production that keeps them moving. Online product reviews can help you on settling the perfect store for your needs.

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Why You Should Use Gluten-Free Flour

Everyone has been listening to the benefits of using a gluten-free diet. But no one knows the exact impact of gluten-free food on the body. As you know, flour is the basic component of our diets, and no one can avoid this fact. But you can also find gluten-free flour in the market. People use gluten-free flour for many reasons. This helps improve health, but you need to know facts about it. The following blog will discuss why you should use gluten-free flour. Let’s start with a better understanding. Improved Digestive System Many people use wheat, barley, and rye which contain a sufficient amount of gluten. Everyone uses wheat globally, but they don’t know they’re consuming gluten unintentionally. But you have other options in flour. You can also use millets like bajra and ragi as a gluten-free flour. Such flour adds an awesome taste to your diet. On the other hand, gluten-free flour improves the digestive system. Because it is easy to digest and doesn’t overburden the stomach, if you have a stomach problem, you should focus on your diet and try to use McKenzie's tapioca flour. Prevent Allergies Gluten is a protein found in daily diet. However, many people have allergic reactions to this gluten which is why they seek a proper food allergy treatment. But people can’t understand things easily. You may have a gluten problem, but you never bother. Whether you have any allergies or not, you should use a gluten-free diet. Flour is basic food everyone uses, and if you add gluten-free flour to your diet, you can avoid allergies. As you know, if you have an allergy, you have to bear a difficult situation. So, you need to use a gluten-free diet as a safe side. But it isn’t necessary to use gluten-free flour; you can use other things. But you can make little changes to some extent. Avoid Chronic Gastrointestinal Disorder Everyone is facing inflammation problems which are not good in the long run. This inflammation can destroy your health. Gluten is one of the factors of that inflammation. You must revise your diet if you frequently get irritable bowel syndrome. If you’re consuming food containing an excess amount of gluten, you should reduce it. Otherwise, you won’t cure the disease. Gastric problems are due to a gluten diet. To protect your intestines, you better opt for gluten-free flour. Improve Immune System The immune system plays a vital role in overall health. Many people use different supplements to boost their immune system but don’t think about their diets. They consume things irrationally and use different medicines to overcome those consequences. A general saying is that the cure is better than treatment, and everyone should follow this general rule. If you change your diet, you can improve your immune system. Gluten-containing diets harm the immune system in many ways. But you can boost and improve it by eliminating gluten from your diet. To summarize, if you want a healthy lifestyle, you better choose gluten-free flour. You also need to improvise and revise your diet overall. Additionals: 10 Health Problems Eased by Yoga 7 Benefits of a Daily At-Home Yoga Practice 5 Natural Immune System Supplement Tips for Cold and Flu Season

How to Thicken Chili – Tried and Tested

A cold winter night with a delicious dish of chili is all you need to enjoy your moment. But wait, Are you left with too much liquid in your chili? Ah! No need to worry at all. There are numerous ways on "how to thicken chili". Honestly, you don’t want a thin chili because there is nothing better than a cheerful bowl of thick chili as your winter dish. Many times, just to thicken the chili, people cook it more than it is necessary. Later, other ingredients in it fall apart and turn to mush. Don’t panic. There are effective and easy ways to thicken chili at your home, and all of these methods are tried and tested. Just be sure to use at least some of these methods to thicken chili before your precious moment turns into sour. How To Thicken Chili - Tried and Tested You may be wondering that cooking your dish for a little longer will make your chili thick. But do you know that you are mushing other ingredients in it? So, you must know other effective ways about how to thicken chili. Below listed are the perfect ways to thicken chili for the perfect night. 1. Flour - Standard Thickening Method: Wheat flour is composed of proteins, sugars, lipids, starch, and enzymes. It is used for making different types of foods. Flour is widely used for thickening chili in most of the kitchens. It really works great. Now its time to try for yourself as well. Ingredients: 30ml or two tablespoons of flour and 60ml or ¼ cup of cold water. How to Use? Take a separate bowl. Mix flour and water thoroughly in it. Make sure that the resulting mixture has no lumps and is smooth. Then add the flour mixture in your thin chili while cooking it in medium-high heat. Stir constantly. Let the mixture boil and thicken well. It will hardly take few minutes. Make sure to continue stirring an additional few seconds to see if you are able to detect flour in your chili flavor. So, here is your hearty chili dish! Now, it is much thicker and tastier than before. You can even serve this to your guests. 2. Arrowroot- Best Thickening Agent: Arrowroot contains Vitamin B, Iron, Potassium, low-protein, starch, etc. It is widely used as a thickening agent in all household kitchens. It is a starch that is extracted from the arrowroot plant. When you will use arrowroot in your dish, then it will give an amazing surface gloss to your liquid chili. Ingredients: 5ml or 1 tablespoon of Arrowroot and 5ml or 1 tablespoon of cold water. How to Use? Take a separate bowl. Mix thoroughly water and arrowroot to turn it into a smooth paste. Make sure that you add only a small amount of arrowroot as it is potent and flavorless. Then add slurry into your thin chili cooking it in medium heat. Stir constantly below the boiling point. Then after 1 to 2 minutes, your thin chili will thicken instantly. Arrowroot adds gloss like appearance to your chili dish making your dish thicker and delicious. I have used this method and got the result, so now it’s your time! 3. Cornstarch- Anti-sticking Agent: Cornstarch is also known as Maize starch which is extracted from the maize grain. It is a food ingredient that is used in thickening soups and sauces. Cornstarch gives a moderate glossy appearance and when mixed with liquid, it rearranges itself. Ingredients: 15ml or 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and 15ml or 1 tablespoon of cold water. How to Use? Take a separate bowl. Mix thoroughly cornstarch and water before mixing it to chili. After adding cornstarch paste to chili, heat it in a medium to high flame. Stir it well until the bubbles start appearing. Wait for few minutes to see the results. If you still feel that your chili should be thicker then you can add more cornstarch and water on it. Then let it cook for an additional few minutes. You can use cornstarch to thicken your chili because it will not alter the taste of your dish of chili as cornstarch is flavorless. Other Simple Ways to Thicken Your Thin Chili: 4. Mix it in Tomato Paste Now, no need to worry about how to thicken chili. If you want your chili only a little thick then you can use this method. Tomato is one of the main elements in chili. So adding it to your mixture won’t alter its taste and makes your chili thicker. Ingredients: 170 grams of tomato paste. How to Use? I am suggesting that you should use fresh handmade tomato paste. Since tomato paste is recognized as bitter in taste, so you can add a pinch of sugar in it. Sugar will add a mild sweetness to your dish by removing tomato’s bitterness. During the final thirty minutes of cooking add 170 grams of tomato paste into your thin chili. Slowly add tomato paste to your thin chili. You can also add it after every ten minutes if you wish (⅓ of the tomato paste). Stir constantly to combine it well. You can use tomato paste to thicken your thin chili dish. But keep all the instructions in mind so as not to make any mistakes while preparing it. 5. Use More Beans to Thicken Your Thin Chili: A bean is a seed of numerous genera of the flowering plant. They have the ability to curl up on any medium. Beans can be use to thicken your thin chili. Do you know that India is the largest producer of dry beans in the world? Yes, it is. Ingredients: 125ml or a half-cup beans. How to Use? If your chili contains beans then strain half cup of beans. Then refry and blend it. Then again mix this mixture to your chili and cook for a few minutes. Stir occasionally to warm it well. You can use canned or home-cooked beans as per your wish. If you still feel that your chili is thin, you can add extra beans in it but make sure you blend it well. Here you go! Your thick chili dish is ready now to serve your family. If you don’t like beans then no need to worry. You can add meats to make your chili thicker. Wrapping it Up "How to thicken chili" is one of the major problems for all the cook masters. Even I have used many methods to thicken my thin chili but all went in vain! Therefore, all the above methods are tried and tested about how to thicken chili. So, you can use it to thicken your thin chili. I know nobody likes to serve thin chili to their family or guests. Even I don’t like it. Do you? Image source: wikihow Read Also: 3 Variants of Thin Crust Pizzas How You Can Increase the Value of Your Home with Stone Veneers

How to Harvest Potatoes: A Complete Guide from Planting to Storage

If there is something that I have learned in life, it is about gardening. Well, almost everything if not all. And if there is one thing that took me some time to master, it was knowing how to harvest potatoes at home! Potatoes are one of the most versatile and popular vegetables in the world. They can be cooked in many different ways, such as boiled, baked, fried, mashed, or roasted. Moreover, they are also rich in carbohydrates, fiber, vitamin C, potassium, and antioxidants. But how do you grow and harvest your own potatoes at home? You see, potatoes are not like cilantro or other plants. These are tubers. In this article, I will show you everything you need to know about how to harvest potatoes, from planting to storage. So, if that is something that you are interested in knowing, then I have you covered! Keep on reading this blog till the end to learn more... How to Plant Potato Seeds or Tubers? The first step in how to harvest potatoes is to plant them. You can start with either potato seeds or tubers. Potato seeds are small, round, and black, and they are usually sold in packets. Potato tubers are the actual potatoes that you eat, and they have eyes or buds that can sprout new plants. You can buy certified seed potatoes from a nursery or garden center, or use organic potatoes from the grocery store. Here are some if the steps that you must take to plant them: Planting Potato Seeds To plant potato seeds, you need to sow them indoors in pots or trays filled with moist potting soil. Place them in a sunny spot and keep the soil moist but not soggy. The seeds will germinate in about two weeks and produce small green shoots. When the shoots are about 3 inches tall, you can transplant them outdoors in your garden or in containers. Planting Potato Tubers To plant potato tubers, you need to cut them into pieces, each with at least one eye. You can do this a few days before planting to let the cut surfaces heal and prevent rotting. Alternatively, you can plant whole small potatoes with several eyes. To prepare the soil, you need to loosen it and add some organic matter, such as compost or manure. You also need to make sure the soil is well-drained and slightly acidic, with a pH of 5.0 to 6.0. You can use a soil test kit to check the pH level and adjust it with lime or sulfur if needed. Planting Potato Pieces To plant the potato pieces, you need to dig a trench about 4 inches deep and 12 inches wide. Place the pieces about 12 inches apart, with the eyes facing up. Cover them with 3 inches of soil and water well. As the plants grow, you need to hill up the soil around them to cover the lower stems and prevent the tubers from being exposed to sunlight, which can turn them green and bitter. You can also mulch the soil with straw, leaves, or grass clippings to retain moisture and suppress weeds. How to Care for Your Potato Plants? The second step in how to harvest potatoes is to care for your potato plants. You need to water them regularly, especially during dry spells, to keep the soil moist but not waterlogged. You also need to fertilize them every two weeks with a balanced organic fertilizer, such as fish emulsion or seaweed extract. Also, you can add some wood ash or bone meal to provide extra potassium and phosphorus, which are essential for tuber formation. You also need to protect your potato plants from pests and diseases, which can reduce your yield and quality. Some of the common potato pests are: Colorado potato beetles, which are yellow and black striped insects that feed on the leaves and can defoliate the plants. You can handpick them and drop them in a bucket of soapy water, or use an organic insecticide, such as neem oil or pyrethrin. Potato leafhoppers, which are small, green, winged insects that suck the sap from the leaves and cause them to curl and yellow. You can spray them with a strong jet of water, or use an organic insecticide, such as garlic or hot pepper spray. Wireworms, which are thin, brown, worm-like larvae that bore into the tubers and cause holes and tunnels. You can trap them with pieces of carrot or potato buried in the soil, or use beneficial nematodes, which are microscopic worms that parasitize and kill the wireworms. Common Potato Diseases One of the most common reasons why a potato cannot grow or survive is the diseases. If you were wondering what some of these can be and how to deal with them, I have you covered! Some of the common potato diseases are: Late Blight: It is a fungal disease that causes brown spots on the leaves and stems, and black or brown lesions on the tubers. It can spread rapidly and destroy the entire crop. You can prevent it by planting resistant varieties, avoiding overhead watering, and removing any infected plants and tubers. You can also use a fungicide, such as copper or sulfur, as a preventive measure. Scab: This is a bacterial disease that causes rough, corky patches on the tubers. It does not affect the taste or edibility of the potatoes, but it reduces their appearance and storage quality. You can prevent it by planting resistant varieties, maintaining a slightly acidic soil pH, and avoiding excessive nitrogen fertilization. Potato Virus Y: Lastly, this is a viral disease that causes mosaic patterns, mottling, or yellowing on the leaves, and misshapen or knobby tubers. It can reduce the yield and quality of the potatoes, and it can be transmitted by aphids or infected seed potatoes. You can prevent it by planting certified virus-free seed potatoes, controlling aphids, and removing any infected plants and tubers. How to Determine When Your Potatoes Are Ready to Harvest? The third step in how to harvest potatoes is to determine when they are ready to harvest. This depends on the type and variety of potatoes you planted, and the size and maturity you want. There are two main types of potatoes: early and late. Early potatoes are ready to harvest in about 10 to 12 weeks (about 3 months) after planting, and they produce small to medium-sized tubers that are tender and thin-skinned. They are best for boiling, steaming, or roasting. Late potatoes are ready to harvest in about 15 to 20 weeks (about 4 and a half months) after planting, and they produce large, starchy tubers that are firm and thick-skinned. They are best for baking, mashing, or frying. Early Harvesting To harvest early potatoes, you can start digging them up when the plants begin to flower, or when the lower leaves start to yellow. You can use a garden fork or a spade to gently lift the plants and tubers from the soil, or you can use your hands to feel for the tubers under the soil. You can harvest as many or as few potatoes as you need, and leave the rest in the ground until you are ready to use them. You can also harvest some of the young, tender leaves and stems, which are edible and nutritious. Late Harvesting To harvest late potatoes, you need to wait until the plants have died back completely, or until the first frost. This allows the tubers to develop a thicker skin, which helps them store better. You can use a garden fork or a spade to dig up the entire row of plants and tubers, or you can use a potato digger, which is a special tool that lifts and separates the tubers from the soil. You need to be careful not to damage or bruise the tubers, as this can cause rotting or spoilage. How to Dig Up, Cure, and Store Your Potatoes? The final step in how to harvest potatoes is to dig up, cure, and store your potatoes. This is important to preserve the quality and shelf life of your potatoes, and to prevent them from sprouting, rotting, or shrinking. Here are the steps to follow: Digging Up After digging up your potatoes, you need to brush off any excess soil and remove any damaged, diseased, or green tubers. Do not wash your potatoes, as this can remove the protective skin and invite bacteria and fungi. You can wash them just before cooking or eating them. Curing You need to cure your potatoes for about two weeks in a cool, dark, and well-ventilated place, such as a basement, garage, or shed. This allows the skin to harden and heal any minor cuts or bruises and enhances the flavor and texture of the potatoes. The ideal temperature for curing is between 50°F and 60°F, and the ideal humidity is between 80% and 90%. You can spread your potatoes in a single layer on a newspaper, cardboard, or wooden crate, and avoid exposing them to light, which can turn them green and bitter. Storing You need to store your potatoes in a cool, dark, and dry place, such as a cellar, pantry, or closet. The ideal temperature for storage is between 40°F and 50°F, and the ideal humidity is between 65% and 70%. You can store your potatoes in paper bags, cardboard boxes, mesh bags, or wooden crates, and check them regularly for any signs of sprouting, rotting, or shriveling. You can also store your potatoes in a root cellar, which is an underground or partially underground structure that maintains a constant temperature and humidity. Additionally, you can also store your potatoes in a clamp, which is a mound of straw, hay, or leaves covered with soil, that insulates and protects the potatoes from frost and rodents. Wrapping It Up! If you want to know about how to harvest potatoes, I hope that this blog has been of help to you. However, if there are any other queries related to the same, please feel free to let me know. All that you need to do is scroll down till you reach the bottom of the page. Then leave your comments and suggestions in the box below. And I will be there to answer them all for you! Read Also: How to Harvest Lettuce: A Step-by-Step Guide for Fresh and Crispy Salads Everything You Need To Know About Harvesting Basil!

History and How to Increase Sales in Your Confectionery Shop

History

What is in a Confectionery Shop

Baker’s Confectionery