By Kelsey Wehsels
Local favorite Carmazzi Caramel Corn recently was one of 43 women-owned businesses nominated for the Sacramento Republic FC Kickstart award. After a significant interview process, Carmazzi Caramel Corn won the grand prize.
“Winning the grand prize grant earned $5,000 which I will use to help continue the growth of the business,” said owner Karen Carmazzi. “The heart of Carmazzi Caramel Corn has been and will always be Sacramento.”
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Carmazzi Caramel Corn operates out of a licensed home kitchen on Eighth Avenue. However, the business is quickly expanding and currently looking for a retail space.
The business started as a fundraiser when owner Karen Carmazzi’s son was planning a trip to Europe and needed to raise money. The following year, her daughter did the same fundraiser for her trip. “Pretty soon people assumed it was a business and were placing reorders, and thus, I decided to turn it into a business instead of a fundraiser,” said Karen.
Since January 2017, the business has involved the whole family. Karen’s son, with an agricultural business degree from Cal Poly and a diverse food-processing background, works full-time for the business as vice president of operations. Her daughters help out from time to time, and her husband does most of the shopping.
“Last week I had my sister-in-law and mom help with the labeling,” said Karen. The recipe is a family tradition, starting with Karen’s grandmother (Grandmother Marie), who would make the caramel corn as a holiday treat. To this day, the recipe is a closely guarded family secret.
Carmazzi Caramel Corn products are made in a nut-free kitchen. They contain no soy, gluten, or high-fructose corn syrup. There is also a vegan option that uses Earth Balance instead of butter. Currently, the most popular item is the gift box of classic caramel corn; however, the newly introduced mini tins are gaining popularity.
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The business operates online, shipping caramel corn as far as New York. But with the warm weather, the chocolate items cannot be shipped. There is a porch pick-up option on the website for customers to get their orders directly from Karen’s house.
“I enjoy decorating my porch with themes and holidays to make my customers’ porch pick-up experience fun!” she said. Local neighborhood drop-offs are available upon request.
Carmazzi Caramel Corn also can be found at Curtis Park Market and Taylor’s Market.
For more information, visit carmazzicaramelcorn.com.