Detroit, MI — It all started with satisfying a sweet tooth for Gabrielle Reed, who now finds herself at the helm of a burgeoning berry business in Detroit. Gabrielle is the Owner and Lead Chocolatier of the Detroit Berry Company, which specializes in custom chocolate-covered strawberries.
Before breaking into the berry biz, Gabrielle never necessarily intended to become an entrepreneur. Instead, what started as a beloved at-home snack hobby blossomed into a business serving hand-crafted sweet (and healthy!) snacks across Metro Detroit. While the chocolate/sugar aspect certainly drags down the overall health score, chocolate-covered strawberries are still relatively healthy for you and are loaded with vitamin C, fiber, and antioxidants!
I learned of Gabrielle’s budding young company through my news job back in August after I had forwarded a segment idea regarding Gabrielle’s company to one of the evening producers. The producer followed up with Gabrielle and invited her to be a live in-studio guest to highlight her local small business for Black Business Month. Due to some unforeseen circumstances with the newscast, I ended up interviewing Gabrielle myself at the station on the day of her segment, and our evening anchor, Terrance, put together a package story on Gabrielle’s inspiring entrepreneurial journey.
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I was personally motivated by Gabrielle’s story and how her business got started because it’s incredibly joyful to see/witness someone who has manifested their passion into a promising future with hard work and determination. After interviewing Gabrielle, I asked if we could meet up in the near future for an interview for MI Foodie Adventures, as Gabrielle’s story is one worth sharing in hopes of inspiring others, as it had inspired me!
Fast-forward a few weeks, and Gabrielle and I were meeting up at my favorite coffee spot in Hazel Park (Java Hutt) to conduct our interview for this blog. Some may recall that this is also where I interviewed Chef Josie Clemens back in May regarding her latest Food Network appearance and mission to increase exposure to vegan lifestyles.
I was excited to learn more about Gabrielle’s journey and what inspired her business. I started by asking Gabrielle what led to the creation of the Detroit Berry Company.
“Initially, there was no inspiration. I’m always on some type of health kick or health journey. So I had strawberries, a couple of other random fruits, and I had some sugar-free chocolate. And I always have, like, the craziest sweet tooth; that’s kind of just the life I live, and of course, I’m trying to eat healthy, so I decided to dip my strawberries in the sugar-free keto chocolate. And it was okay; it curbed my sweet tooth for the moment, but from there, I was like, okay, if this is pretty okay, maybe I could try it with regular chocolate and see how that goes,” Gabrielle explained. “I was making them more for my boyfriend to snack on or for my mom as holidays came up, like, it wasn’t a business; it was more of an experiment. With a lot of support and encouragement, because I was never interested in starting a business, I decided to take the leap, and I jumped, and here we are.”
Despite only launching Detroit Berry Company two years ago, Gabrielle’s business has grown quickly, even winning a grant at the Michigan Women Forward 2024 Statewide Food Competition. Getting started as a small business owner is typically a massive undertaking in terms of labor, finances, research and development, social media, etc. Tack on things like purchasing supplies, creating the product, coordinating sales, and that’s essentially the daily routine for Gabrielle — the lone employee of the Detroit Berry Company. Embarking on this entrepreneurial endeavor may not have initially been what she envisioned for a career, but once her path was set, Gabrielle says she was all in.
“It became something that was fun. So, drawing the designs and turning them into something cool, that was fun for me and my friend. She just started me an Instagram and was like, ‘Here’s your page,’ and that was that. So, it was never really a thing that I wanted; it more so blossomed into a business. I was on YouTube looking at different videos, and it was just something that I thought was interesting. And I’m one of those, like, if I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it. So that’s kind of how we got here,” Gabrielle said.
Gabrielle has been crushing it these last two years in the small business world, attending various pop-up events around Metro Detroit to share her product with the world and gather support. Gabrielle said she loves getting face-time with customers and her supporters to not only introduce her product but also introduce herself and make some “berry besties” along the way.
“So that’s what I call my group of berry supporters; I call them my berry besties! It’s always nice to get a chance to not just meet the community but meet other business owners. I’ve met some amazing people who have been supportive and helped connect me with other businesses and other resources. So that’s been awesome,” Gabrielle said.
Finding time to conduct every aspect of her business takes a lot of hard work and dedication, with Gabrielle expressing sincere gratitude for the help she receives from her mom, whom she jokingly calls her employee of the month. As the Detroit Berry Company continues to grow and build support/clients, Gabrielle said she’s excited to hire her first official employee soon, start to build a staff, and be able to take a step back and focus more on overall strategy.
“It’s a little challenging to be the person who makes all the strawberries, posts them, records them, goes to the event the whole day, sells them, comes back, makes them, and then manage online orders. In order for me to truly get to where I see myself, I need help. And as somebody who likes to do everything, that has been part of my journey, starting to delegate and relinquish some responsibilities. So that has been a journey, for sure,” said Gabrielle.
Despite the workload, Gabrielle champions it all and says she really enjoys when she gets to be creative for custom orders or special events. From weddings to sports events, grad parties, anniversaries, holidays, and more, as you see below, Gabrielle is inventive and creative with her designs to fit any occasion! Not only are the designs visually appealing, but they are a remarkably curated cruise through Sweetsville, encompassing a perfect balance of sweetness and tartness from the strawberry. I don’t know where Gabrielle sources her strawberries, but every strawberry is massive and noticeably fresh!
I concluded the interview with my final question, asking Gabrielle what the Detroit Berry Company means to her and how that influences her journey.
“As a small business owner, I think it means taking pride in what I do and setting an example for not just myself but for my community and holding myself and my product to a higher standard and really putting myself out there and putting our best foot forward as Detroit Berry Company,” Gabrielle said.
Gabrielle and I wrapped up our interview and parted ways as the afternoon hours approached. It was a busy Saturday for us both, as Gabrielle had two more appointments after interviewing with me, and I had plans to head to Dally in the Alley in Detroit’s Midtown District near Wayne State University.
Gabrielle is one busy bee churning out her sweet treats for everyone to enjoy; it’s inspiring how much she can juggle while also producing such exceptional products. What started as a personal pursuit to appease a sweet tooth craving has now flourished into a thriving small business for Gabrielle, who says she’s been very appreciative to all who support and recommend her company. There’s pride in every order crafted by Gabrielle, who has a bright future ahead as a small business owner, sharing her elevated beloved snacks for all to enjoy. Whether it’s for an upcoming holiday or special occasion, or if you happen to encounter the Detroit Berry Company at an upcoming pop-up event, check out Gabrielle’s business and help support a wonderful local small business owner!
For more information about the Detroit Berry Company and its products, click here.
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