A small-business owner based in Delaware, Ohio, will bring her beloved brittle back to the community after a 14-month hiatus.

Sweet Liberty Candy Company, founded in September, runs entirely out of Jaqueline Bell’s home kitchen, where she creates various flavors of nut brittle. She ran her former company, JK Brittleworks, alongside her ex-husband, but when it dissolved in 2020, Bell stepped out to create a business of her own, operating as the sole employee.   

“As a company, I named it Sweet Liberty because I love to spread the message that liberty is so many different things, and liberty is so personal to what people believe it is,” Bell said. “I discovered my liberty after I divorced my ex-husband and just lost my entire world last year and I think everybody needs to be this free.”

Bell said her initial interest in brittle led her and her daughter to experiment with new brittle flavors in their kitchen every Sunday. From the earlier JK Brittleworks to Sweet Liberty, friends and loyal customers have supported her through it all. 

Demetrius Howard, a loyal customer of Bell’s since 2014, said he was ecstatic to learn Bell would be selling brittles again. 

“In supporting small businesses like this, you get better relationships, better bonds, and I love to see her succeed in her endeavors to take this to the next level,” Howard said. “When I heard she was restarting the company, I was one of the first people to respond in excitement. My kids and wife were full of joy to see another box of brittle on the doorstep. The whole house lit up.” 

Mary Berkel, Bell’s best friend of 36 years, said she has been alongside Bell on her journey to build a company inspired by her newfound independence. 

“It has been amazing to watch her become this incredible businesswoman that I always knew she was going to be,” Berkel said. “Just because you are a woman, it doesn’t mean you are not independent, or that you can’t do what you want to do, and you don’t need to let people hold you back.” 

Bell said she is looking forward to what the future holds for Sweet Liberty. The company currently offers brittle flavors ranging from cayenne pecan to macadamia coconut, as well as other treats such as homemade marshmallows. Still, Bell said she hopes to offer a wider range of options in the future.

“Entrepreneurs are crazy. We are very independent, which goes back to the theme of liberty,” Bell said. “I see myself branching into chocolates and more unusual candies, something that will drive people here because they have never tried it before. I don’t want to be run-of-the-mill; I want to become unique.”