CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — This week’s Made in Chicago puts the spotlight on Sugar Bliss, which has provided gourmet sweets to the Loop ever since its opening in 2007.
“We do everything from cupcakes, cake pops, french macaroons, cookies, brownies, to some gluten free and vegan,” said Sugar Bliss CEO and Founder Teresa Ging.
Ging told WBBM that the first Sugar Bliss storefront on Washington Street and Wabash Avenue closed a few years ago. But from its current location — on the Wabash side of the Palmer House, where it’s been since 2015 — Sugar Bliss’ packaged cookies are making their way into retail stores, including dozens of local Walgreens.
“But we also do delivery, so we do a lot of corporate catering,” she said.
Prior to opening Sugar Bliss, Ging had a career in finance and investment banking.
“And then, as we’ve all had long days at work, a friend of mine was baking cupcakes, and sifting powdered sugar looked so therapeutic that I decided to try it,” Ging said. “That was my ‘ah-hah’ or lightbulb moment, so I decided to enroll in pastry school in Paris.”
She completed a two-month program in Paris, and upon her return to Chicago opened the first Sugar Bliss location in 2007.
“We are [a] Chicago, local small business,” she said. “We’re also women- and minority-owned and certified.”
That certification can be helpful when navigating an expanding business venture, said Ging. That’s why a portion of the proceeds from each retail cookie package sold goes into a fund that helps other women and minority entrepreneurs receive or maintain their certification.
“Just being certified allows you to have a lot more opportunities to grow into retailers and additional corporate clients that are looking to support more women and minority businesses,” she said
The premium baked goods of Sugar Bliss, Made in Chicago.
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