Guest: Sydney Adams
Organization: Sydney’s Sweet Shoppe
Location: Tucson, Arizona
Category: Local food business
Sydney Adams is the owner of Sydney’s Sweet Shoppe, a standalone pie shop in Tucson built on traditional techniques, family legacy, and word-of-mouth growth.
In this episode, Sydney shares what growth actually looks like behind the counter — from learning her grandmother’s pie crust recipe to pricing handmade products, setting boundaries around customization, hiring a team, and navigating the less visible pressures of running a small food business.
This conversation focuses on the realities of scaling thoughtfully, protecting quality, and building a local reputation that keeps customers coming back.
Learn more about Sydney’s Sweet Shoppe in Tucson, including the story behind the business and how it has grown locally.
Sydney’s Sweet Shoppe operates in a part of Tucson without heavy foot traffic, making local reputation, repeat customers, and referrals central to its growth.
The business has expanded through selective wholesale partnerships across Tucson and Southern Arizona while keeping production and quality controlled in-house.
Another Tucson business featured on Two Lane Tucson is Excelsior Associates, where long-term relationships and referrals also shape growth.
Many of the themes in this conversation — trust, reputation, and being found at the right moment — show up in how local businesses experience Google.
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Elaine: Today I’m sitting down with Sydney Adams, the owner of Sydney’s Sweet Shoppe, a locally loved dessert business here in Tucson. Sydney’s Sweet Shoppe is known for handcrafted sweets, walk-in treats, and a strong word-of-mouth following, while also navigating the less visible side of growth, wholesale constraints, vendor limits, and the realities of scaling a food business.
We’re talking about what growth actually looks like behind the counter, not just what shows up on social media.
Sydney, can you walk me through how Sydney’s Sweet Shoppe started and what those early days looked like?
Sydney: Absolutely. Thank you so much for having me, Elaine. To be honest, I grew up baking anything and everything that wasn’t pie. Pie wasn’t something that was in my wheelhouse or even something I thought about attempting.
My grandmother is a phenomenal baker. She’s made pies all her life, with handmade pie crust, and it wasn’t until 2018 that I had even the smallest inkling of wanting to learn from her. When I was in school, I started asking her in the kitchen to show me how to make her pie crust.
There was something about my grandmother’s pies that made them special, and I wanted to understand what that was. I followed her rules exactly. I’m very methodical, just like she is, and she enjoyed teaching me because I was an excellent student.
Once I could successfully make her pie crust, I asked to go through her cookbook and learn how to make pies from start to finish, the right way. She was honestly in awe that someone wanted to carry this on. She thought when she passed, no one would care about pie anymore, and I really wanted to preserve that legacy.
Elaine: What made you decide to turn this into a real business?
Sydney: After that summer of trying and failing many times, I finally mastered the dough. Pie crust is difficult — it’s all about technique and cold water. Once I could make pies successfully, I printed a flyer and brought it to my job around Christmas.
I offered five pies at $15 each. Looking back, there was no profit, but it was about proving to myself that I could do it. About 30 coworkers ordered pies and gave me great feedback. That gave me confidence that people would actually pay for what I was making.
I talked to my dad about it, and he told me if I wanted to start a business, he’d help me every step of the way. He’s my business partner and has experience managing businesses and mentoring women. He really gave me the confidence to take that next step.
Elaine: What surprised you once customers started coming in regularly?
Sydney: Honestly, how many pie flavors exist. People would ask for custom combinations I’d never even heard of. We don’t do custom pies — we stick to traditional recipes — but it opened my eyes to how creative pie can be once you master the technique.
Elaine: How do most people find Sydney’s Sweet Shoppe today?
Sydney: Word of mouth is huge. We’re on the east side of Tucson with limited foot traffic, so referrals matter. Social media — especially Instagram and TikTok — also helps people see what we’re making day to day.
People tell me all the time that their hairdresser, friend, or a dinner party introduced them to us. That kind of discovery always makes me smile.
Elaine: What feels harder than people might expect?
Sydney: Time management. Posting consistently, remembering to send newsletters, keeping people informed — it’s a lot to juggle. Sometimes things fall through the cracks, and I have to circle back.
Pricing is another big one. People say, “It’s just pie,” but it’s handmade with high-quality ingredients, prepared by staff, and made fresh on-site. Pricing isn’t arbitrary — it reflects the real cost of producing quality.
Elaine: Was there a moment when things really started clicking?
Sydney: Hiring employees in 2024. Before that, it was just my dad, my sister, and me. Once I built a team, production increased and burnout decreased. Seeing my employees grow and serve customers with the same care was huge.
I even had to reassure longtime customers that they were in good hands. Letting go of being the only face of the business was a big shift.
Elaine: Has your thinking around wholesale and scaling changed?
Sydney: Absolutely. Early on, we worked with restaurants, but 2020 made that difficult. Over time, word of mouth led to wholesale partnerships across Tucson and Southern Arizona — including hotels, tea houses, and a resort in Tubac, which was especially meaningful to me.
Elaine: When someone walks into Sydney’s Sweet Shoppe for the first time, what do you hope they feel when they leave?
Sydney: Like they’re part of our family. I want it to feel warm and cozy, like leaving your grandmother’s house. We bake seasonally and offer over 30 flavors throughout the year. I want people to leave feeling cared for and happy they came in.
This episode is part of the Two Lane Tucson series featuring local business owners and organizations.