MAKing It: Keep calm and macaron with Sweet Caribou

Presented by First National Bank Alaska

When James Strong and his sister Barbara started selling macarons, they had no idea where the fledgling idea for Sweet Caribou would take them.

“When we started making macarons, we had never actually eaten them,” Strong laughed. “But we started making them for the farmers market and just kept selling out.”

Ten years later, Sweet Caribou is a thriving patisserie with a full menu of delicious, handcrafted macarons and healthy, grab-and-go meals. It has formed partnerships with other local restauranters, creating a stronger community within Alaska’s food industry. And this summer, Sweet Caribou opened a second storefront in the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport.

Amid its remarkable growth, Strong is staying humble. He is looking toward Sweet Caribou’s future and how to support the team who has carried it to success.

“The reality is, Sweet Caribou has grown way beyond me. It’s all these people who make it happen. And without them, it wouldn’t work,” said Strong.

‘It’s always smart to listen to mom’

Strong is a lifelong Alaskan who started his career in the Anchorage restaurant scene.

“At some point, I was told to get out of the restaurant industry,” he said. “So, I went and did what I was supposed to do.”

He got a degree in finance and went on to study fisheries. Halfway through a Ph.D. program, Strong realized he was on the wrong path.

He took time off and quickly grew bored. One day he had an idea to create and sell cupcakes alongside his sister, Barbara.

In 2014, they began selling cupcakes at local farmers markets. After a few weeks, Barbara pitched the idea of selling macarons, which were trending in foodie magazines. The meringue sandwich cookies were an instant success.

“My mom actually said to me, ‘Son, these cupcakes are good. But those macarons are special,’” James Strong chuckled. “It’s always smart to listen to mom.”

The siblings shifted focus and learned all they could. They traveled to Paris, food capital of the world renowned for its macarons, where they trained in Parisian kitchens. As their skills grew, their macarons continued to sell out at local markets.

In 2016, Sweet Caribou opened its midtown Anchorage storefront. The shop’s colorful macarons are bursting in flavor, with combinations like strawberry lemonade, chocolate raspberry, rose lychee, pistachio chocolate and many more.

Strong knew he needed more than macarons to sustain the business, though. He saw other companies delivering salads and thought, “I can do it better. I can use local stuff and make everything from scratch,” said Strong.

Sweet Caribou’s signature salad lunch bowls were born, followed by sandwiches, giving larger groups more options.

During the pandemic, Sweet Caribou continued to thrive thanks to its grab-and-go model and delivery service. Strong said flexibility is key to its success.

“My passion is bringing joy to people’s lives through food, but the beautiful thing is I’m not tied to anything in particular,” said Strong. “And that gives me, in some ways, an advantage.”

The company has also tried many ideas that haven’t worked. When he first started, Strong spent $25,000 on an industrial macaron machine that he had seen at other businesses. But the finicky, commercial size machine only worked if powered up for 30 hours a week. He quickly realized it didn’t fit Sweet Caribou’s needs or its handcrafted vision.

“After a week, I had to scrap the whole thing. I’ve never used it again,” said Strong.

But the failure doesn’t bother him.

“You learn more from failure sometimes than you do from actually making it,” he said. “I’m a big believer that failure is not necessarily failure—it’s actually a good thing.”

The magic of handcrafted

At its midtown shop, customers are greeted by a smaller storefront, which makes for an intimate atmosphere.

“You can buy food anywhere, but it’s about creating an experience for people,” said Strong.

Yet behind the 1,500-square-foot area that customers see is an additional 4,500 square feet of commercial kitchens and a staff of Alaskans handcrafting every meal.

To sustain the food’s artisan quality, Sweet Caribou employs 55 people who focus on small batches, high-quality ingredients and great customer service.

“It gives the food some character you just can’t get from a large-scale operation,” said Strong.

They’ve also continued annual trips to France, sending bakers and staff who work with macarons to Paris for hands-on training and to check out new flavors.

“Paris is where all the great ideas start and normally when something becomes popular over there it takes, like, five years for it to get to Alaska,” he said.

Strong’s team is the backbone of his success. He hopes to one day turn Sweet Caribou into an employee-owned business. Sweet Caribou already shares a third of its profits with staff, who get a quarterly bonus on top of regular wages.

Sharing ‘a little bit of local flair’

In 2023, Bema Cafe opened next door as an adjoining coffee shop. The cafe is run by a former head chef at Sweet Caribou who went on to start his own coffee roasting business, Bema Roasters. The shops share an adjoining wall, and the menus and atmospheres complement each other.

“It gave us an opportunity to marry the places together,” Strong said of the partnership.

Sweet Caribou customers can now grab their order and take a seat next door at Bema Cafe. At the cafe, they can order freshly made breakfast burritos and coffee roasted in-house.

“It’s been really exciting to see the growth over the last six months,” said Strong.

Then in June, Sweet Caribou opened a second location in the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, between the C and D gates.

“We’re just excited to be able to offer a little taste of Alaska, a little bit of local flair,” Strong said of the airport location.

Travelers can grab Sweet Caribou’s salads and sandwiches, which come with a miniature macaron and a bottle of water. Sandwiches also come with chips. Its boxes of macarons are “a great little gift if you’re headed out of state,” said Strong.

Business has been steady and sandwiches in particular have been flying off the shelves. Another local airport vendor, Denali Pretzels & Coffee Co., is managing the storefront. Without its help, Sweet Caribou would have struggled to support the expansion, Strong said.

The Anchorage community has embraced the new location.

“As someone who flies in and out of that airport a lot, it’s nice to see Alaska products and services sold there,” said Julie Aloysius, Dimond branch manager for First National Bank Alaska.

Sweet Caribou has been banking with Aloysius at First National since the company’s beginning. Aloysius loves stopping by the shop, where she is always greeted by a friendly crew thriving in the bustling environment.

“James is such an Alaska guy. He’s personable. His employees are personable,” she said. “His customer service is amazing, and he really knows the economy and what’s going to sell.”

In many ways, the patisserie reminds Aloysius of First National’s own core values.

“Most of the food they make is sourced from Alaska businesses. It feels like it’s just a perfect fit for First National. That’s the same thing we’re doing—supporting Alaskans,” said Aloysius.

For Strong, the partnership with First National has brought peace of mind. With the bank’s 100-year history in Alaska, Strong knows Sweet Caribou’s finances are secure. The bank’s team approach also means his questions are answered quickly, by experts in their field.

“It’s nice having a bank that is used to supporting small businesses,” said Strong.

‘A perfect equilibrium’

As the offerings at Sweet Caribou have grown, so have opportunities to expand. But Strong said the patisserie is not looking to branch out any further.

Strong’s next step is making Sweet Caribou a turnkey operation, so someone else can step in and carry on his legacy.

“At some point, it’ll be time for me to pass it on to someone else,” he said.

Restaurants can be challenging to sell if not set up for the transition, Strong said. He has seen other successful businesses simply shutter their doors, unable to find a buyer.

“It’s a sad, sad thing,” said Strong. He’s making sure Sweet Caribou can thrive without him.

First National has helped many small businesses continue their legacy through generational change.

“By identifying their long-term plans, we can help business owners be better prepared when the time comes,” said Zac Hays, vice president and lending unit team leader at First National Bank Alaska. “Furthermore, we can work with potential buyers and facilitate introductions and meetings where the buyer and seller can discuss various options.”

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In the meantime, Strong continues to enjoy every moment and every macaron. Some of his favorites are made in limited batches, like sour lime and raspberry, which reminds him of “a sophisticated Sour Patch Kid,” he said.

Another is black licorice and vanilla, which has a small but dedicated following who he alerts every time a batch is made.

“I send out a text and say, ‘licorice is here,’ and they all randomly show up. So that’s pretty fun,” said Strong.

But these small gestures mean so much more, he said. That’s what makes Sweet Caribou special. Like First National Bank Alaska, for Strong and his team, it’s about building relationships.

“A big reason why we grew was because of that personalized attention,” said Strong. “I think we’ve come to a perfect equilibrium.”

First National Bank Alaska has been Alaska’s community bank since 1922. We’re proud to help Alaskans shape a brighter tomorrow by investing in your success as you take the leaps of faith, large and small, that enrich communities across the state.

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This article was produced by the sponsored content department of Anchorage Daily News in collaboration with First National Bank Alaska. The ADN newsroom was not involved in its production.