A 17-year-old who suffered with depression now makes thousands of pounds a week after starting up an online sweet business.
Callum Baker, from Cardiff, Wales, has credited his venture with helping to improve his mental health. The teenager set up The Sweet Shack a week before his 16th birthday after being inspired by TikTok, and the account of sweet seller Greedy Gwin.
Callum told WalesOnline: "“I was really bored and I watched a lot of TikTok and I was watching these sweet business videos. I bought some sweets online with £50 of my own money and set up a small website with just five products and then just started posting on Facebook pages and TikTok."
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He now ships between 220 and 250 orders a week and has turned over around £74,000 since January 2022. The teenager from Pontprennau has come a long way from his first five products and now stocks more than 700 different sweets, crisps and drinks, as well as the original sweets which started it all.
The young entrepreneur has also found the business has helped his mental health after previously spending time in hospital due to depression. He said: “When I first started this business I was at rock bottom.
"I didn’t feel like I had much to live for but starting the business really gave me a drive in life. My confidence has shot up, going on TikTok live and speaking to hundreds of people every night is amazing."
Callum’s family are all supportive with mum Michele helping to re-stock over the weekend and pack the parcels for shipping. The senior NHS manager is referred to jokingly as admin by Callum’s customers and is paid in sweets.
Discussing Callum’s mental health struggles, she said: “It’s just changed him and I often wonder, would he be here now if it weren’t for this business? I think it’s really saved him. He gets excited now and he talks about the business and has something to look forward to.”
The business, which started out with just £50 and the corner of Callum’s bedroom, has grown rapidly over the past 18 months. Callum now runs his business from a purpose built shed in his parents' back garden nicknamed The Shack.
But he is already looking into expanding into larger premises. The teen has also recently taken on an employee, a neighbour from his street who comes into The Shack in the evenings to help Callum pack the orders.
Callum’s ambitions don’t end at running his own sweet shop. The young businessman is currently studying public services at Cardiff and Vale College with an eye to joining the police force later down the line. But for now Callum wants to carry on his sweet shop and potentially expand into the import export sweet market.
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