A PIECE OF CHELSEA'S STORY
Meet Chelsea Kobus - she graduated from Grand Valley State University and is now working in Grand Rapids for her family's business Le Bon Macaron! Read more to see how her travels inspired the business & get inspired by this adventurous girl.
WHAT ARE YOU UP TO RIGHT NOW?
Right now I’m working full-time for my family’s business Le Bon Macaron in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I work in our shop during the week, and manage our social media accounts. I’ve had a lot of fun this past year growing our social media presence and dipping my toes into some food styling and photography.
WHAT'S YOUR DAILY ROUTINE TYPICALLY LOOK LIKE ON A WEEKDAY?
I work in our Grand Rapids shop Monday-Friday, so my typical weekday routine revolves around my work! I’m not an early riser by any means, but my favorite part of my day is the time I spend in our shop before we open, and the first few hours that we’re open. I can’t help but start my day with a delicious coffee and I just savor the quiet moments before our busiest hours. Many of our neighborhood regulars stop in during the morning, so I spend a lot of time chatting with them as they start their days, as well as staging photos for our Instagram and Facebook page. Depending on the day, we may be filling macarons with buttercream (the shells are baked in our East Lansing shop and transported to us in Grand Rapids), we may be hosting tea parties, or a number of other things. Each day has many similarities, but each day is also very different, which makes the job that much more fun!
TELL US ABOUT LE BON MACARON AND HOW THAT BEGAN?
TELL US ABOUT LE BON MACARON AND HOW THAT BEGAN?
Le Bon Macaron is truly the product of my family’s love for France. My sister previously owned a bakery called A Piece O’Cake (Still currently located in East Lansing) where she was well known for her gorgeous wedding and specialty cakes. Both my sister and I have degrees in French, and we both have spent time living in France, so it’s only natural that our love of France would translate into both of our futures in some way. Not only do we love France, but my family is also very into food, and my dad started experimenting with macarons maybe 6 years ago or so, and it just took off from there!
HOW DO YOU REPRESENT THE TRAIT ADVENTUROUS?
I've never truly considered myself a very adventurous person to be honest. I was always a picky eater, pretty cautious, and really not all that independent. I’ve always loved travel though, and after my first experience studying abroad, I really developed a new outlook on life and really discovered myself. Now looking back at everything I’ve accomplished in the past 5 years, I’m really proud of everything that I’ve done, and the places I’ve visited. I honestly love nothing more than visiting new places and experiencing other cultures, it’s very exhilarating and to be quite honest, addicting. My suitcase is tucked away for the moment as I’ve returned home on a more permanent basis, but I’d jump at any chance to hop on a plane and take off somewhere new!
HOW DO YOU REPRESENT THE TRAIT ADVENTUROUS?
WHAT'S ONE THING YOU WISH YOU HAD KNOWN BEFORE TRAVELING AND LIVING ABROAD?
NOW THAT YOU'RE BACK IN AMERICA, HOW DO YOU CONTINUE TO LIVE OUT AN ADVENTUROUS LIFESTYLE?
My life is hardly as adventurous now than it has been in the past! Between work and every day responsibilities, I can’t say that I lead all that adventurous of a lifestlye at the moment, but I do live adventurously through exploring where I live. Grand Rapids is such a fun place to be right now, there are always new places to try and new things to do. But to be honest, Michigan is a great place to be in general. You can easily drive or take a train to Chicago, take a mini trip up north, or drive the quick trip to Lake Michigan. There’s plenty of exploring to do here, whether it feels really adventurous or not.
NOW THAT YOU'RE BACK IN AMERICA, HOW DO YOU CONTINUE TO LIVE OUT AN ADVENTUROUS LIFESTYLE?
HOW DOES BEING ADVENTUROUS TRANSLATE INTO YOUR BUSINESS, LE BON MACARON?
Le Bon Macaron really does have adventure at it’s heart. Had my sister not taken the plunge first in studying French and studying abroad in France, who knows where we would be. We love how our experiences have translated into our business, we worked really hard to bring a little piece of France to Michigan, from the music we play in our shops, to the design of our tables and chairs. We try to incorporate as much as we can from what we’ve gathered from previous travels, and we’ll never stop exploring and discovering new ways to develop the business.
WHAT'S YOUR ALL TIME FAVORITE MACARON?
If I had to choose one macaron as my all time favorite, I’d have to choose nutella! But to be honest, nutella-anything is my favorite. So maybe that doesn’t count… so in that case, I’d have to say that salted dark chocolate would be a very close second!
ASIDE FROM BEING ADVENTUROUS, WHAT ARE THREE OTHER PERSONALITY TRAITS THAT YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF?
1) Determined : I’m very stubborn. Maybe that’s sometimes a bad thing, but when it comes down to something that I’m very passionate about, my stubbornness really translates into determination to be successful.
2) Dreamer: I spend a lot of time thinking towards the future and envisioning where I think I will be, both in my work life and my personal life. I love making plans whether realistic or not, it really keeps my motivated.
3) Creative: I’ve really found a creative outlet in our social media. I’m very passionate about the photography used in our posts and the process of creating it.
WHAT ARE YOUR HOPES AND GOALS FOR YOUR OWN FUTURE AND THE FUTURE OF LE BON MACARON? WHERE DO YOU SEE YOURSELF IN FIVE YEARS?
I hope that Le Bon Macaron will only continue to flourish and grow. It’s hard to picture how things may change in the future, but I look forward to seeing how the business will evolve and progress. We’re very much a small business family, so I can only imagine that I’ll continue working in a small business setting in the future as well. I have absolutely no idea where I see myself in 5 years, I struggle to even see where I’ll be in 1 year! I’m just enjoying life as if comes right now, I’m not too concerned about where I’ll be when I’m 30 quite yet!
WHAT'S YOUR BIGGEST PIECE OF ADVICE TO ADVENTUROUS GALS LIKE YOURSELF?
WHAT'S YOUR BIGGEST PIECE OF ADVICE TO ADVENTUROUS GALS LIKE YOURSELF?
Being adventurous has it’s fun, but never lose your common sense with it. I’m overly cautious 99% of the time, ask my boyfriend. I met him while traveling by myself, and my parents should be thrilled that the movie Taken was the one of the first things I thought of. I even hid from him after saying good-bye so that he wouldn’t be able to follow me just in case. Okay, maybe I was a little extreme looking back, but always be smart, that’s the best advice I can give.
Check out more from Chelsea and Le Bon Macaron below!
Le Bon Macaron
Website | Blog | Facebook | Instagram
Contact info: Chelsea@lebonmacaron.com