“I had a chance to rediscover a childhood passion, which was making treats and family food.”

Andrea Young’s journey to Sweet Vegan started in an entirely different industry. After studying at Parsons School of Design, she built a career in architecture, working on high end residential projects, embassies, and even projects connected to the White House. Creativity had always been at the center of her work, but over time she began questioning what impact she wanted to have.

“Being a creative person and having a background in architecture, I loved what I was doing, but I also felt my outreach was so limited,” Andrea says.

When her mother experienced a health issue and moved into her New York apartment while recovering, Andrea found herself reconnecting with food and wellness in a much more personal way. What began as helping support her mother eventually led her to rethink her own relationship with health and nutrition.

“Looking at where joy came for me at that point in my life, I decided to really rethink, go back to school, and become a vegan chef.” Chef Andrea eventually trained under chef Christine Waltermeyer at Natural Kitchen Cooking School. What began as curiosity evolved into a completely different direction and a chance to combine creativity, health, and human connection in a way she had not expected.

“I really didn’t enjoy the process of making food where it didn’t bring people together.”

After becoming a certified vegan chef, Andrea began working as a personal chef while continuing her architecture career. Through working with clients throughout New York City, she started seeing firsthand how many people had dietary restrictions or were looking for healthier alternatives without wanting to sacrifice enjoyment.

As she experimented with recipes and ingredients, Chef Andrea noticed something missing. Plant based desserts often felt limiting, and many people approached vegan products with low expectations. She saw an opportunity to create something different. At the same time, she realized something about the work itself, that she was less interested in preparing individual meals and more interested in creating experiences that people could share.

“I thought, what if I made fun desserts that everyone could enjoy?” she says.

That question eventually became Sweet Vegan. The company creates plant-based chocolates and specialty desserts designed to be enjoyable first, while also accommodating a range of dietary needs. Products are made without dairy and can also be free of soy, gluten, nuts, and refined white sugar, creating options for customers who often feel excluded from traditional desserts.

But Chef Andrea never wanted Sweet Vegan to be defined by restrictions. She wanted people to focus on the experience itself.

“So many times, people will have a vegan product and they don’t always have a good experience,” Chef Andrea says. “People are totally blown away. This is the classic line: ‘I can’t believe this is vegan.’”

Over time, Sweet Vegan grew beyond individual customers and into partnerships with brands including Williams Sonoma, Lululemon, Aveda, and Anthropologie. Tastings and events introduced new customers to the products and often changed assumptions about what plant-based desserts could be.

For Andrea, creating those moments of surprise and connection has become one of the most rewarding parts of building Sweet Vegan.

“I want to see more teaching opportunities on a larger scale.”

Sweet Vegan officially launched in 2019, only months before the pandemic disrupted businesses across the country. Like many small businesses, Chef Andrea had to quickly rethink how to reach customers and continue growing.

During that time, Sweet Vegan adapted in unexpected ways, supporting healthcare workers, airports, and essential workers while finding new ways to connect online. Chef Andrea also began expanding into storytelling and education through virtual classes and community focused programming.

“We started writing about people, telling their story,” Chef Andrea says. “I started teaching classes online.”

Today, Chef Andrea sees Sweet Vegan as more than a chocolate or dessert company. She sees it as an opportunity to create conversations around food, wellness, and community.

As Sweet Vegan continues to grow, Chef Andrea hopes to expand through education, partnerships, and community experiences that allow more people to discover the brand. Whether someone finds Sweet Vegan through a chocolate sample, a class, or a story shared online, the goal remains the same, creating products and experiences that people genuinely enjoy and want to come back to.