{"id":11906,"date":"2026-07-13T02:40:38","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T02:40:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fintechpulse8.com\/?p=11906"},"modified":"2026-07-13T02:40:38","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T02:40:38","slug":"sa-out-of-world-cup-but-heres-some-mexican-candy-consolation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fintechpulse8.com\/?p=11906","title":{"rendered":"SA out of World Cup, but here\u2019s some Mexican candy consolation"},"content":{"rendered":"

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https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=GV8rPS2F3O8<\/a><\/p>\n

I\u2019m no sports commentator, but let me premise this latest episode of the Mzansi Business Podcast on the 2026 Fifa World Cup (sort of).<\/p>\n

In June, Bafana Bafana was knocked out of the tournament after their defeat to Canada, ending South Africa\u2019s dream of finally making it into the round of 16.<\/p>\n

For South Africans who couldn\u2019t enjoy the 2026 games in the US, Canada or Mexico, ARK Provisions founder Claire Swanson used the opportunity to punt her sweet, sour, salty, and spicy treats to bring soccer fanatics closer to the Mexican culture from the comfort of their own homes.<\/p>\n

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Just because the boys are back home, it doesn\u2019t mean we can\u2019t be consoled with Mexican-inspired confectionery.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The inspiration for ARK dates to a trip to Mexico in 2019, where Swanson and her partner Jacqueline Cloete discovered dulces enchilados \u2013 treats made by coating traditional sweets and gummies in a tangy, spicy and savoury seasoning blend.<\/p>\n

Swanson says the flavours reminded her of the tamarind sweets commonly enjoyed in Cape Malay culture, inspiring the idea of creating a local version of the Mexican favourite.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe minute I tasted it, it was super familiar to me, like something I\u2019d grown up eating. I remember thinking this could work in South Africa,\u201d she said on the Mzansi Business Podcast.<\/p>\n

Back home, the idea stayed with her.<\/p>\n

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Watch\/listen:
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During the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020, Swanson came across a viral TikTok trend showing gummies coated in chamoy and taj\u00edn \u2013 a popular Mexican chilli, lime and salt seasoning. Curious, she began experimenting with similar flavour combinations in her home kitchen.<\/p>\n

\u201cI spent many years understanding the South African consumer \u2013 their palette and their flavour, and I knew for a fact that South Africans love sweet and fruity and that was already the base of the flavours for the product I tasted in Mexico. But we tweaked it, it\u2019s not 100% the recipe I had there. We did make it fruitier, added a bit of a sweeter profile and I knew South Africans would love that.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the time, she was still working full time in product development while running a food pop-up from her home, where the sweets were initially sold alongside tacos.<\/p>\n

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As orders increased, family members and a small team helped mix, package and distribute the products, while the brand built a loyal following through social media and word of mouth.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

ARK was formally established in 2022 after Swanson left her corporate career to focus on the business full-time.<\/p>\n

Today, its four Mexican candy variants \u2013 Mixed Mexican Candy, Watermelon Mexican Candy, Peach Hearts Mexican Candy, and Strawberry Bites Mexican Candy \u2013 are available in selected Checkers stores in the Western Cape.<\/p>\n

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ARK Provisions achieved average sales growth of 45% within just eight weeks of launching in 11 Checkers stores across Cape Town.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

For Swanson, the success represents a striking leap from a business that began in her own kitchen in Cape Town\u2019s southern suburbs.<\/p>\n

Before ARK could move from her home kitchen to the shelves of Checkers, the business had to meet stringent health and safety requirements.<\/p>\n

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To prepare for retail distribution, the company invested in food safety certification, manufacturing capacity and operational systems.<\/p>\n

Watch\/listen: Imagine a coffee shop where everything on the menu costs R14<\/p>\n

A big milestone came when ARK partnered with a female-owned confectionery manufacturer in Maitland, allowing production to move into a certified commercial facility. Through this partnership, six additional jobs were created.<\/p>\n

Watch\/listen: Localisation lifeline: Can manufacturing rescue SA\u2019s jobs crisis?<\/p>\n

Despite its growth, ARK remains a family-run business.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy family is very much involved in ARK,\u201d says Swanson, adding that her 14-year-old son Noah also plays an active role.<\/p>\n

\u201cARK stands for Always Remain Kind, which is both our family mantra and a tribute to our son Noah, who inspired the brand name. It\u2019s just as much their story as it is mine.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

#World #Cup #heres #Mexican #candy #consolation<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019m no sports commentator, but let me premise this latest episode of the Mzansi Business Podcast on the 2026 Fifa World Cup (sort of). In June, Bafana Bafana was knocked… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11907,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[3134,13291,3826,540,4408,51],"class_list":["post-11906","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-investing","tag-candy","tag-consolation","tag-cup","tag-heres","tag-mexican","tag-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fintechpulse8.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11906","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fintechpulse8.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fintechpulse8.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fintechpulse8.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fintechpulse8.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11906"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.fintechpulse8.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11906\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fintechpulse8.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/11907"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fintechpulse8.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11906"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fintechpulse8.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11906"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fintechpulse8.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11906"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}