With COVID-19 shutting down most of the events on the UNG campus, Kilwins is the place for students to go have a fun experience and a sweet taste in their mouth.

With at least 20% of Kilwins customers and workers being students of the University of North Georgia, shows that this is a great outlet for students to go have some fun, get some sweets and possibly a job close to campus. These students bring their friends and their parents bringing more business to the store. Students receive a 10% discount on anything in the store, encouraging other students to come in and buy sweets.

Kilwins has six flavors of fudge that they always keep stocked. They like to mix it up every now and then and pull a new recipe from the book. So keep your eye out for the new flavors.

They closed on the building in February 2020 and started construction in march right as the COVID-19 pandemic hit, which brought the owner, Jay Krowicki, a lot of anxiety. The building was built in 1928 and he wanted to maintain the historic feel of the building. He renevated most evertything in the store but kept the front doors which are believed to be original. Once the construction process was over, they opened the store on Oct. 13. Krowicki said in an interview, “after that first day my anxiety level dissapeared.” To make sure they are safe during COVID, Kilwins has installed a new HVAC reme halo system in the store. This system has a UV light in it that reacts with the titanium tubing which produces microscopic particles that settle on the surfaces to help sanitize the store. These units are also used in many hospitals. They also have a tight schedule of cleaning and sanitizing the store regularly. To still accomidate for sampling, they put the fudge in a small cup and set the cup on the counter and let the customer pick it up.

Before he signed on this building he looked all over in search of the right location. They looked in Gainsville, Woodstock, Helen, etc. One Christmas on a family trip to Dahlonega, they stumbled upon this building for sale. Dahlonega has a great art scene and a lively soul to it with people out playing music on the street and kids playing in the grass. Krowicki said, “My business is making sure you have an experience when you walk in…that when you leave you feel a little better than when you walked in.”