For three years, The Candy Van has travelled all around Tasmania bringing its renowned doughnuts to various regional locations.
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The Hobart-based company was created by former MONA pastry chef Nathan Imber in 2018 and has been going from strength to strength.
Now working alongside his partner, Karolina Novak, Mr Imber said he decided to leave the traditional hospitality gig behind due to its long hours and often brutal shifts.
"I chose doughnuts because they're a very versatile product, you can do a lot of flavours with them and there was also a big market here because there's no Krispy Kreme," he said.
"I bought this old, antique van, got a cool paint job done on it and just started taking it out."
Mr Imber recalls that after he took the van out for the first time, the doughnuts left such an impression on the public that the next night a crowd of over one-hundred people lined up waiting for the van to open.
"We weren't expecting it and it was a bit scary - there were a lot of satisfied customers and a lot of unhappy ones who missed out," he said.
"Sometimes we get a bit overwhelmed with orders because it's just us two in the van but I guess it's a good problem to have."
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He said the influx of sweet-toothed customers hadn't subsided and meant the small business often sold out of stock.
This constant demand has enabled The Candy Van to operate five days a week. Their location changes each day, but is always advertised on their Facebook page.
Mr Imber, who recently moved his family to Launceston, said the unceasing consumer want for the product has afforded him the opportunity to broaden his business.
He said the first step of the expansion was acquiring a truck that will be used in his new home city. He believed that would result in the van being freed up so that it can continue to capitalise on hungry markets elsewhere.
"My end goal is to have a heap of trucks around the country," he said.
"Hospitality is a bit of a rough industry so I want to be able to look after people too and give them opportunities that they otherwise wouldn't get working in a restaurant or bakery."
He said The Candy Van offers a wide variety of doughnuts but that the best-selling flavours so far have been the caramel cheesecake and vanilla slice.
He hoped the new truck would be finalised within the next month so the company could launch its latest product, doughnut snack packs.
Mr Imber said he travelled around Australia sampling different types of doughnuts and combined a range of methods to create his own style.
"The main thing that makes our doughnuts different from others is that we use a yeast dough which makes them a lot lighter and fluffier as well as the fact that we don't use a lot of sugar, so they're not sickly," he said.
"I'm also a big believer in natural and local ingredients so we use those as much as we can."
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The Candy Van owner said that although he only moved to Launceston a few days ago, he is already planning a big move to Sydney.
He hoped the emerald city would be the perfect location for the business to branch out interstate.
"I wanted to hit up Launceston first and try to find the right person to take over the van here - I'm still looking for them," he said.
Like many other pop up food vendors in the area, The Candy Van has had to rely on the compliance of private property owners in order to navigate the strict on-street trading regulations imposed by the City of Launceston.
"I'd like to open up a dessert bar in Newtown eventually, but I'll wait for COVID to cool first," he said.
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