Sweet Venture

By Naperville Magazine
Appears in the June 2021 issue.

While the vast majority of beekeepers are hobbyists, Wayne residents Chris and Bernadette Saad turned this hobby into a thriving family business. After taking Chuck Lorence’s Beekeeping for Beginners course through the Geneva Park District, they started three hives on their two-acre property, and grew that to 15 hives the following year.

he housing crash in 2008 (and the recession that followed) gave Chris, a carpenter by trade, an opportunity to grow the hobby into a full-time business in 2010. Honey Trails (myhoneytrails.com) now sells honey, beeswax candles, pollen, skin care products, wooden hive components, and bee packages from three locations. Buy products from the Naperville Farmers Market on Saturdays, the Winfield Farmers Market on Wednesdays, and their home in Wayne year-round.

Photo courtesy Honey Trails