Michael Karamallis and wife Paola operate award-winning fairy floss firm Fluffy Crunch based in Georges River Council, Sydney. Since COVID scuttled their main income source, they’ve been spinning sugar for a new customer base.

Twelve months ago, our core business was the events industry – we attended markets and had a full calendar, including the Royal Melbourne Show, Sydney Royal Easter Show, New Year’s Eve and events in Canberra and Adelaide. We had an online portal but were so busy with events we only used it to promote ourselves and sell a small number of petite tubs and party favours.

Coronavirus caused mass gatherings to be banned, so all our scheduled events were cancelled. When it was announced the Sydney Royal Show wasn’t going ahead, we wondered how we’d survive. Panic set in, there was anger and frustration and we even started applying for other jobs.

With 8000 tubs of fairy floss sitting there ready for the Sydney show, we didn’t know how to get rid of them. We reached out to customers on social media and asked for help, which led to transitioning the whole business online, selling nationally.

Online sales started growing rapidly, so we swiftly shifted our mindset. Last Christmas we produced Advent Calendars featuring 25 fairy floss flavours, which we rebranded as Isolation Countdown boxes. We started selling hampers, including Stay Safe, Boredom Buster and Slime-and-Floss boxes, containing gift items as well as gourmet spun sugar.

This ecommerce innovation saved us and got us through the crisis. It remains an uncertain climate and we’re not sure how the events industry will rebound, so we’re focused on online trade and private events like weddings/parties. Since restrictions have relaxed, we’ve noticed a slight drop in sales so our next challenge will be how we navigate the future.

Michael and Paola Karamallis
Owners
Fluffy Crunch