ABOVE: Diane Sukalski and Suzanne Sukalski hold a box full of their brand new Soy Nibblets.

FAIRMONT – On the heels of its 10-year anniversary, Sunshine Suzy is seeing sustained growth and is expanding its product line.

Sunshine Suzy is a roasted Corn Nibblet snack company owned by CEO Suzanne Sukalski, a 33-year-old woman with Down Syndrome. She started the company in 2015 with a mission to Nourish the Soul, Celebrate Abilities and Inspire Positivity. Her responsibilities include fulfilling orders, designing the packaging and being the decision-maker as boss.

Sukalski has also worked as a Hampton Inn Hostess. It was there she first made Sunshine Suzy snacks when her boss asked if they could be included as a local option in the Hilton Honors box. Company President and Suzanne’s Mother Diane Sukalski said after experience in the Hampton’s kitchen, work started on moving the company into their home.

“We outgrew the kitchen at Hampton Inn,” she said. “We redid above the garage into her commercial kitchen. This is now inspected and licensed by the Minnesota Department of Ag.”

They started with one flavor, sea salt. Since then, they have grown to include five flavors and recently announced the inclusion of Soy Nibblets. The Sukalski family are farmers and said it makes sense to branch out given they grow corn and soybeans.

When they started, the Sunshine Suzy bags were filled, weighed, sealed and labeled by hand. Diane Sukalski said with the help of Suzanne’s brother, Michael Sukalski, they went to work on automating parts of the process to make it smoother and easier to make more bags. It once took them three months to make 5,000 one-ounce packages. Now, they can do so in two days.

Diane Sukalksi said none of it would have been possible without the Sukalski family, who have helped with marketing, operations, loading and unloading.

“Without one person, it wouldn’t run as smoothly,” she said. “That’s what I say about Suzy’s life, too. If one person in her life from birth until now was missing, she might not be where she is right now. Everybody has had their contribution and working together with a family can have its disagreements, but that’s how you learn, compromise and figure out what’s going to work.”

The Sunshine Suzy group has continued to make the production process as smooth and efficient as possible. They recently updated their L-bar shrink wrap machine. Diane Sukalski said it works much better than the old one and allows them to shrink-wrap boxes.

Currently, Sunshine Suzy products are offered at Fareway, Hy-Vee and Hampton Inn in Fairmont, as well as the Ghost Town Tavern in Imogene. Bags of one, two and five ounces, as well as bulk box orders, are available from www.sunshine-suzy.com. Diane Sukalski said because it is a small family operation, they are not looking to expand distribution.

What they have expanded is the story of Sunshine Suzy and its success, with Suzanne Sukalski working as a motivational speaker. She has spoken to schools, businesses and international delegations about her successes and what people with disabilities can accomplish.

“She is able to talk for other people that don’t have a voice,” Diane Sukalski said. “She is able to demonstrate we all have abilities, we all have a special place in this world and we all belong here.”

Looking forward, Suzanne Sukalski is set on continuing her business and advocacy. She has a speaking engagement with Best Buy corporate in March and has already seen great response to the Soy Nibblets. Diane Sukalski said she is looking forward to seeing the business continue as she gets older.

“It’d be fun to have those kids start to take over and learn the business side of things,” she said. “The record-keeping that needs to be done, the inspections, the cleaning.”

Looking back on the past 10 years, Diane Sukalski said Sunshine Suzy’s success and her daughter’s becoming a businesswoman, role model and inspiration to others have provided several takeaways.

“Showing the world that everybody has potential, has abilities,” she said. “Everybody uses their own unique abilities, and it makes the world go around. It’s great we’re all made differently and like to do different things.”

For more information, visit www.sunshine-suzy.com Currently Soy Nibblets are only available on the website.