Welcome to another inspiring episode of Celebrating Small Family Businesses! Today we're featuring Sugar and Spice in Las Vegas - a family business with a powerful mission that creates gourmet chocolate-coated peanut butter balls.

We had the pleasure of chatting with the Long family: Sheri and John Long, along with their children Aston, Keilani, and Alexis. What started as a teacher's side hustle in Southern California has grown into an award-winning Las Vegas chocolatier that provides meaningful employment opportunities for foster youth who have aged out of the system and individuals with developmental disabilities.

Key Highlights:

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• 🏆 Gold Winner - Best of Las Vegas 2024 Chocolatier (3 years running!)
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• 🎯 Mission-Driven Business - Employing foster youth and individuals with autism
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• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 True Family Teamwork - Each family member has found their unique role
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• 🏈 Surprise Ending - How they won Super Bowl tickets!
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• ☕ Big Dreams - Their goal to get into Starbucks nationwide

This episode showcases the power of family teamwork, the importance of having a mission beyond profit, and how a small business can make a big impact in their community. Whether you're a family business owner or just love inspiring entrepreneurship stories, this episode has something for everyone!

Timestamps:

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• [00:00:00] Introduction and welcome
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• [00:01:00] The origin story - from teacher side hustle to full-time business
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• [00:02:00] Starting in Nevada right before COVID
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• [00:04:00] Awards and recognition, including Best of Las Vegas
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• [00:05:00] What they love about working as a family
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• [00:09:00] How each family member discovered their strengths
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• [00:13:00] The importance of making participation a choice
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• [00:18:00] How Sheri's teaching background helped
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• [00:21:00] Overcoming their biggest challenge - COVID
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• [00:28:00] Corporate gifts and cross-promotion strategies
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• [00:33:00] Super Bowl and F1 opportunities in Las Vegas
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• [00:35:00] The viral Super Bowl ticket surprise video
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• [00:36:00] Future plans and expansion goals
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• [00:42:00] Celebrating small wins on the path to big dreams
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• [00:44:00] Advice for other family businesses
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• [00:45:00] Where to find Sugar and Spice
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Connect with Sugar and Spice Las Vegas:

• Instagram: @sugarandspicelasvegas (their biggest platform)
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• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sugarandspicesales/#
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• TikTok: @sugarandspicelasvegas
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• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sugarandspicesaleslasvegas/
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• Website: https://sugarandspicelasvegas.com
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Products:

Gourmet chocolate peanut butter balls available in 4-count and 12-count boxes, featuring smooth chocolate coating with a "surprise crunch" inside. Available at various locations throughout Las Vegas, Reno, Mesquite, and expanding to Texas and Manhattan!