Veteran Turns Sweet Compulsion Into Obsessive Candy Hustle

Ellen Laguatan worked in the military for 30 years. Throughout her service she held many positions, including maintaining F-16 fighter jets, as well as working in computer and radio maintenance. She loved her work.

But retirement comes for us all—or at least, everyone in the military. And as Ellen's retirement was approaching, she knew that her life would be a lot easier if she could produce a little side income. Something to supplement the Thrift Savings Plan she'd earned through her service. Beyond that, she loved the idea of working for herself, being her own boss, and…. maybe even sleeping in a little.

Ellen had already come up with an idea for a years earlier. It was based on a love of candy—a candy crush if you will.

At work, Ellen kept a candy jar on her desk… and she had to have that candy arranged in a certain way. Otherwise, she couldn't eat it. What appeared as a peculiar quirk to most people, was actually a severe condition to her.

You see, Ellen has OCD, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, a mental illness that affects 2.2 million Americans. It's characterized by having unwanted and repetitive thoughts, urges, or images that don't go away. The famous example is of someone washing their hands over and over again, despite them already being clean.

For Ellen, she has an urge to count and has particular urges about eating. With candy for instance, something she loves, her brain just won't let her enjoy it unless it's laid out and organized in a very specific way. That's why she arranges her candy in a jar layered by color and size. Believe it or not, this type of issue affects many people with OCD.

Early on, Ellen's coworkers would mix up her candy jar not realizing how negative the consequences could be. But, gradually they learned this was a real problem for her and made efforts not to disrupt her. One day, Ellen was away from her desk a new colleague took some candy and unwittingly rearranged the whole jar. When she returned to her desk the OCD took over.

(She says he just didn't know and he's now a good friend.)

She spent the whole afternoon rearranging the candy jar using her specific counts and OCD traits. She wasn't able to leave for the day until it was done.

While rearranging the candy Ellen thought… "I shouldn't have to do this. I'm not the only person who eats their candy this way, I know I'm not. There should be an OCD Candy Company for people like me!"

Well, be careful what you wish for.

The idea stuck in Ellen's head. Fast forward a bit and Ellen's retirement is now coming up. Ellen spent part of her weekends working on her concept for a candy brand for OCD sufferers. She designed the packaging and labels. She packed lollipops in nice neat lines of matching colors and sizes. So those suffering with OCD could enjoy candy without being bothered by its disorganization.

The idea became therapeutic for her. Since her OCD manifests itself by her counting things, one of the things she enjoys about making the candy is that she can count in a productive way.

When the opportunity arrived for Ellen to open a small store front in Tacoma, Washington, she went for it. In this, she would stock lollipops, sweets, books and accessories as well as her specially OCD packed candy. The total cost of setting everything up was $6,450. This cost included her initial candy products, deposit and rent as well as packaging for the original batches.

Ellen actually received some negative feedback about the name and considered calling it The Organized Candy Company instead, but decided against it. Some people may be offended, but many others will visit the store because of the name and Ellen is happy with that trade off.

If she was going to run a traditional candy store, she would need to increase her range. While her specialty was the OCD candy products she had created, lots of potential customers would just want typical candy. So she began carrying a broad range including vegan, sugar free, gluten free, nut free and even soy free candy of all different flavors.

It would be just like your local candy store, but with a twist. In addition to stocking your typical candy and traditional favorites, Ellen would also provide specialist candy for people with OCD. It's a highly specialized business idea to be sure, but did it work?

In her own words, Ellen was never expecting to get rich from this side hustle. That's not the goal. However, the store has given her a smooth transition from full time work to retirement. And, a few years ago, she was able to leave the military and focus more on The OCD Candy Company.

The nature of retail means that her profits fluctuate a lot. There are some really great days where Ellen might sell hundreds of dollars worth of candy, and some really bad days where she may sell nothing. She keeps a close eye on her monthly expenses and knows how much she needs to make each week to turn a profit.

While it's great that she makes some side income doing this, for Ellen, the real reward has been being able to help other OCD sufferers.

One of the things she noticed a few months after launching was parents, teachers and carers of autistic children coming to buy her candy. Through their visits, she discovered her candy helps autistic kids experiencing OCD tendencies enjoy candy like everyone else. With that knowledge, she decided to take a portion of each sale and donate it to charities for children with autism.

The people in her target market return again and again. When they come into the store with these requests they aren't laughed at, judged or looked down on. Ellen understands them and, through her candy company, helps them.

Ellen may be retired but that doesn't mean she is standing still. This retired side hustler didn't let OCD get in her way.

Like her candy itself, the side hustle helped her bring a little order in a world full of chaos.

Listen to today's episode to learn more...