The Cardiff teen using TikTok to make £4,000 a week selling sweets from his garden shed
A young businessman from Cardiff, who started selling homemade cookies aged-15 before setting up his own sweet shop, is now making more than £4,000 a week.
Callum Baker, 17, started his online sweet shop The Sweet Shack on TikTok, just a week before his 16th birthday.
“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,” Callum said.
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.
The business started out with just £50 in the corner of Callum’s bedroom and has grown rapidly over the past 18 months.
He said: “At first I had the corner of my bedroom, the one shelf, then two and then I took over the spare room as things got more popular."
Callum has now had to move the business into a purpose built shed in his parents' back garden which has been nicknamed The Shack. But he says he's is already looking into expanding into larger premises.
The young entrepreneur has also said the business has helped his mental health after previously spending time in hospital due to depression.
“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 has even roped in some of his family, with his mum Michele helping to re-stock over the weekend and pack the parcels for shipping.
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.”
And Callum says his 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 he wants to carry on his sweet shop and potentially expand into the import export sweet market.
Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To know...