How sweet it is: 2 sisters carry out mom's dream at Maggie's Candy Kitchen and Bakery in Pueblo

Mar. 19—Two sisters have joined forces to create homemade sweet confections from bonbons to brittles at a new Pueblo store inspired by their mother.

Maggie's Candy Kitchen and Bakery, 965 W. U.S. 50, unit 120, is the result of four generations of one family creating and perfecting sweet confections. Owned by sisters Nettie Williams and Pennie Gaudi, the store is named for their mother, the late Maggie Gaudi, who started it all in 1960.

"She did chocolates from 1960 to about 1988," Williams said. "We lived on a 160-acre alfalfa ranch owned by a doctor in Santa Monica."

"Every day we would come home from school we would have to bag the bunnies and help her get ready for Easter. And of course we ate a lot of the chocolate as well," Williams said with a laugh.

The sisters' late great aunt Polly McMannis was "her sidekick and they worked together so it was just a fun thing for both of them," Williams said.

Williams was able to obtain her mother's chocolate molds, machine and recipes and "started just doing some chocolates at home and selling them" in Gaudi's store, the "a Borgata" in Conifer.

Gaudi had given up her corporate career working for Home Depot and Michael's Arts and Crafts and started the business in 2013 at the age of 49.

Williams gave up her corporate careers with Dell and FedEx to strike out on her own.

When Gaudi expanded the a Borgata to Canon City, she saw a building for rent which spurred her to ask Williams if she wanted to open a candy store.

"We did it and decided to name it after our mother. We were in Canon City for two years and we struggled there.

"Our lease was up (in April 2019) so we closed up shop," Williams explained.

The sisters were not willing to give up on their sweet dreams and despite the pandemic, reopened Maggie's on July 18 at its current location in Pueblo.

"We decided this is where we needed to land and it's been going great. We have a lot of customers who are repeat customers," she said.

From hand-dipped bonbons with homemade creamy ganache centers to five different kinds of fudge, four varieties of brittles, toffee, turtles, peanut clusters, chocolate dipped fruits and honeycomb candy, "we pretty much try to do it all," Williams said.

Fudge and brittle flavors change with the seasons.

"If we can find a recipe, we can make it," Gaudi said.

Right now, fudge bunnies dipped in chocolate are a hot commodity for the Easter season.

William's granddaughter Aubrey Williams, 20, is the baker in the family. She creates cookies, muffins, cannoli, mini cakes and all sorts of baked goods.

Another granddaughter, Aszlynn Williams, 21, is the bookkeeper and runs the front of the shop, plus she "helps me cut bonbons and bag bunnies just like I used to do when I was her age," keeping the business all in the family, Williams said.

In addition to all the homemade goodies, Gaudi brings in a plethora of nostalgic candies that many customers recall from their childhoods.

Black Jack, clove and Beeman's chewing gum , candy cigarettes, Swedish candies, Astro Pops, Whistle Pops and licorice treats are just a few of the nostalgic candies that can't be found in most stores.

"It is fun standing in the store and listening to all the stories of people reminiscing," Williams said.

"My dad used to go fishing with me and we used to always make sure we had this candy so it's great hearing their stories too besides having our history with the candy store," Gaudi said.

Taffy made in Salt Lake City is available in 24 different flavors including seven flavors of natural taffy that features real fruit juice.

As if they don't have enough to do, the sisters supply sweets to 10 wholesale accounts from three Candy Bar Stores in Colorado Springs to Kay's Liquor in Walsenburg and several locations in Bailey as well as Parker, Idaho Springs and even a shop in New Mexico. One customer, Aspen Peak Cellars in Bailey, offers bonbons with their wines.

Store hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Hours likely will be extended in the summer.

To place an order, send an email to MCKorders@outlook.com. The business phone number is 719-696-8045.

Chieftain reporter Tracy Harmon covers business and Fremont County news. She can be reached by email at tharmon@chieftain.com or via Twitter at twitter.com/tracywumps.