Lily Loves: GETYERMACARON – Lily Shippen

The fifth instalment of our ‘Lily Loves’ blog features ‘GETYERMACARON’, a business born during lockdown and set up by the brilliant Kelly Maguire. 

After unfortunately losing her job as a Personal Assistant in April of this year, as a result of COVID-19, Kelly didn’t want to just sit back and wait for it all to blow over. Instead, she decided to turn something she loved into a business. As a self-confessed baking enthusiast with a passion for the hospitality industry, Kelly had always known she would have a start-up of her own one day, depending on the current market and trends, however, she had never had the opportunity or the time to do so until COVID hit. Initially, Kelly took some time off to really think about what she wanted to get out of this unfortunate situation, and, after giving it some thought, she decided she had nothing to lose and would give it her best shot! 

As we all know, throughout lockdown the nation seemed to turn to baking, if it wasn’t banana bread, it was brownies or cookies, so Kelly wanted to do something a bit different and find a gap in the market. She thought about all the delicious treats that she enjoys and something about macarons really stuck with her. As a lover of macarons, Kelly discussed how she was surprised that most people had never tried one before and that, other than the French style patisserie shops, which people tend to go in when passing and never return to, there wasn’t much out there that focused on the delicious macaron. As a result, Kelly had found her product and ‘GETYERMACARON’ was born.  

Despite her love of all things baking, Kelly had made very few macarons compared to the usual cakes, scones and brownie desserts. With macarons being termed the ‘diva of desserts’ due to how difficult they are to make, she trialled the three different methods (Italian, French and Swiss) of making them, before finding her niche and making sure that she got everything spot on. What she quickly realised was that her strong skills with regards to organisation and attention to detail, gained from several years of working in PA positions, could go some way to help her. Kelly honed her craft by continually practising until she had finally cracked it – THE perfect macaron! 

Kelly’s aim for ‘GETYERMACARON’ is for it to be an everyday dessert/treat; an approachable, fun and unique business which is more than just your average ‘one-stop macaron shop’; and a place with repeat custom. In order to stand out from the crowd, Kelly is focusing on seasonal dessert-based macarons, with menus changing throughout the year. The products on offer are not your usual delicate, patisserie style macarons, but something more full on with unique and punchy flavours designed to be reminiscent of your favourite desserts or memories from childhood. Think flavours like black forest gateau, rich chocolate cookie with a soft gooey salted caramel ganache, and toffee apple pie, to name but a few. In addition to this, Kelly is using a variety of fillings including buttercreams, curds and ganaches, but using her flair and good understanding of flavouring to make these stand out from the rest. 

The next stop for Kelly and ‘GETYERMACARON’ is a stall at The Makers Market at Great Northern in Manchester City Centre. This Sunday, 4^th October, is the official launch date for the business and her first ever stall. Kelly will be selling boxes of five/six macarons and customers will be able to choose from a selection of flavours. There will be samples too! Alongside her macarons, there will also be a few fun twists on the stall including different treats for children and an interactive game for people to get involved in. Kelly’s aim is to branch out to other locations over the next few months, so keep a look out for her at your local Makers Market soon! 

So what can we look out for in the future from ‘GETYERMACARON’? Kelly has big plans for the business and very much lives by the motto ‘nothing ventured nothing gained’. There will be a website and online shop launching soon, where customers can purchase boxes online to be delivered to their door. Furthermore, Kelly will also be offering bespoke orders for the likes of birthday parties, weddings and any other special occasion you can think of! As she is currently running the business from her home kitchen, there are also plans to move the business to a small unit in the near future, so watch this space… 

It was a pleasure to speak to Kelly about her new venture and we have a huge amount of respect for her for taking the plunge and running with her new business during what has been a very difficult year. We wish her all the best and can’t wait to try every single flavour soon! 

If you are looking to learn more about ‘GETYERMACARON’ and where you can find Kelly and her delicious treats, you can follow her on Instagram @getyermacaron or you can sign up to receive alerts on her website www.getyermacaron.com. In the meantime, if you are heading to The Makers Market in Manchester this weekend, look out for Kelly and go and support the wonderful business she has worked so hard to create!