Michigan Sugar Company: Meet a Pioneer

MEET A PIONEER: Today, we'd like to introduce you to Christina Best, owner of an artistic cotton candy business called Sweet Spinners.
A native of Vassar, Christina started her business in 2019 just a few months before the COVID-19 pandemic began. Her operation is designed for fairs and festivals, as well as private parties, which has made the last year challenging. But, she said, it also inspired her to create some cotton candy "pivots," like cotton candy cakes, bites, and drops that can be dipped into drinks to make them unique.
But her sweet spot is artistic cotton candy creations she spins using pure, all-nature Pioneer Sugar.
"I buy it in 50-pound bags and wouldn't use any other sugar," she said. "Pioneer Sugar is very consistent and it also has a special place in my heart because many members of my family lived in Bay City and so I grew up seeing those piles of sugarbeets."
Christina is hoping for a busy 2021 filled with festivals and events across the state. If you are interested in having her at your event, send her a message on Facebook or call 989-823-4558.
Click through the photos to learn more about this sweet Pioneer! #BeAPioneer #CottonCandy

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As a kid, growing up in Michigan's Thumb, Christina Best loved cotton candy. Blue Raspberry was her favorite flavor.

"But sometimes I couldn't tell the difference in the flavors," said Christina, who graduated from Vassar High School in 1998 and today lives in Millington with her husband Artie and son Sean, 10. "I learned pretty early that some people just put in the colors, but not the flavors."

Fast forward to about six years ago when Christina Best first saw a cotton candy maker spinning incredible creations on bamboo sticks.

"I remember thinking to myself, 'Wouldn't it be fun to do this?' " she said. "Then, I saw it again a few years later and I decided to teach myself this craft. I am self taught by watching YouTube videos and a lot of trial and error ... and a few tears."

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In 2019, Christina Best launched her own cotton candy business now called Sweet Spinners. She describes it as "half cotton candy, half entertainment."

And if you get a chance to see Christina spinning one of her signature cotton candy creations, you'll also quickly come to appreciate her as an artist.

"It is a form of art, just with sugar," said Christina. "Only, when I'm done, my cotton candy creations are as big as a small child."

Sweet Spinners is an operation designed to be taken on the road to places like fairs and festivals, as well as private parties.

Owner Christina Best also sets up about once every month at the SVRC Marketplace in downtown Saginaw. Her next visit there is scheduled for March 12-13.

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The past year has been challenging because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but Christina Best said it also inspired her to create some cotton candy "pivots," like cotton candy cakes, bites, and drops that can be dipped into drinks to add a little flavored sweetness.

She mixes up all kinds of flavors for her cotton candy creations, including Strawberry, watermelon, sassy apple, banana, cherry, and lime, as well as some more exotic or non-traditional flavors like sparkling wine, pumpkin spice, peppermint stick, and even one that incorporates Tajín seasoning.

"I've even added Pop Rocks candy," she said.

And, of course, she offers blue raspberry that actually delivers on taste.

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No matter what Christina Best is making at 
Sweet Spinners, you can bet she's using pure, all-nature Pioneer Sugar.

"I buy it in 50-pound bags and wouldn't use any other sugar," she said. "Pioneer Sugar is very consistent and it also has a special place in my heart because many members of my family lived in Bay City and so I grew up seeing those piles of sugarbeets."

Christina Best's signature cotton candy creations come in four standard shapes - rosebud, blossom, heart, and butterfly.

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Christina Best, owner of Sweet Spinners, said she always knew food would somehow be part of her life.

At age 16, she got her first high school job working at McDonald's.

"They taught me work ethic," she said. "They had a saying: 'If you have time to lean, you have time to clean' "

For the past 18 years, Christina has worked as a server at Zehnder's of Frankenmuth, a job she loves and plans to continue even as she works to grow her own business.

Christina Best is hoping for a busy 2021 filled with festivals and events across the state.

If you are interested in having her at your event or booking her for a private party, call 989-823-4558.