About

Our Story

Welcome to Barney’s Sweet Shop, where we are on a mission to make life sweeter! Since opening our doors, we’ve been spreading joy and deliciousness, one treat at a time. Nestled in the heart of Ashland City, Tennessee, we are doing more than just satisfying your sweet tooth—we are creating opportunities, crafting gourmet artisanal treats, and championing inclusion in our community and beyond.

At Barney’s, we believe snacks can do more than tantalize your taste buds. That’s why we are proud to “Make Life Sweeter” by being the “Snack that Gives Back”. Your purchase from Barney’s employs an amazing team of individuals with disabilities to be able to build their careers and their community one sweet snack at a time.

Individuals with disabilities often struggle to find meaningful employment that pays a livable wage with some positions even paying below the federal minimum wage due to discriminatory laws that create forced poverty for this important segment of our community.

These folks are our friends and our family, and we believe they deserve to have the same opportunities that the rest of us often take for granted. We are championing change building a business that centers inclusion, equity, opportunity, community, creativity, and excellence

Our shelves are brimming with an array of handcrafted gourmet artisanal popcorns, and seasonal hand pulled brittles with plans to expand to even more of our treasured family recipes to share with all of you. Whether you’re craving a crunchy sweet treat, exploring new flavors, or looking for the perfect gift, we’ve got something to delight everyone. Can’t decide? Be sure to try one of our carefully curated gift boxes, a customer favorite that’s sure to brighten your day!

Barney’s Sweet Shop isn’t just about selling sweets—it’s about celebrating life’s simple pleasures. We want to create moments of joy for you and your friends and family as you share one of our delicious treats.

So come discover how we make life sweeter at Barney’s Sweet Shop—where every snack is a celebration, and every purchase makes a difference.

Meet the Team

Founder + CEO

Harmony Hensley

Owner Harmony Hensley has been a champion for inclusion since her high school days where through a series of medical issues she was classified as a Special Education Student. She learned first-hand about some of the challenges her friends and peers in the disability community faced. Fast forward to a career in the nonprofit space fighting for marginalized people, including her friends with disabilities, Hensley was committed to finding a more sustainable way to change outcomes for this community. A serial entrepreneur, Hensley decided to take a note from her own Momma and her maternal Grandma, both celebrated candy makers in the family, and leverage their legendary prowess to launch a business that would make life sweeter for everyone. With the blessing of her Momma and partner in crime, Shirley Mennen, they took Momma’s OG Caramel Corn that already had a cult following back home in Indiana, and the legendary hand pulled nut brittles of Grandma Edith Eileen (aka “Grandma Honey”) to create opportunities for aspiring candy makers in the disability community. Named after their beloved chief taste tester and biggest fan, Grandpa Barney Smith, Barney’s Sweet Shop was born.

Grandma Shirley (COO)

Shirley & Mike Mennen

Pop Pop (Principal Taste Tester)
Caramel Corn Legends

Shirley Mennen, lovingly known to the Barney’s crew as “Harmony’s Mom” or “Mom”, is the beauty and the brains behind our OG Classic Caramel Corn. For years Shirley and Mike Mennen (Harmony’s Parents – bless their hearts) would make dozens of batches of their beloved Caramel Corn every Christmas for friends and family back in Indiana. They have a huge fan base from years of sweet gift giving every holiday season that truly helped us launch the business. Shirley is also a seasoned HR Queen with both SHRM and ADA certifications helping us build out our intentional inclusive employment strategies to help create opportunities that spark change in our community and beyond.

Mike Mennen (aka “Harmony’s Dad”) is a critical part of the Barney’s team as he is our trusted Principal Taste Tester, ensuring every batch is at it’s very best.

Without these two and their tireless support – there would be no Barney’s.

Grandma Honey + Grandpa Barney

In loving memory of the pair that taught us to do everything with a whole lot of heart, hustle, and a bit of sass. The Legendary Barney + Edith Smith

Director of Vocational Training

Gigi Jordan MS, OTR/L

Dream Builder

Gigi is an occupational therapist who has worked extensively with young adults with a variety of behavioral and neurological diagnoses to develop vocational skills and secure employment. While living in Boston, she developed multiple vocational training programs for a non-profit high school for students with disabilities. She established community partnerships with local businesses and collaborated with them to develop the appropriate supports for successful employment. Gigi is passionate about helping people with disabilities find meaningful employment by building their confidence, independence, and self-awareness to identify their strengths and advocate for their needed supports.

Gigi has been recognized as an Emerging Leader by the American Occupational Therapy Association and currently serves on the Executive Board of the Tennessee Occupational Therapy Association.

In her role at Barney’s, she has been integral to helping us make sure we are setting our staff up for success from streamlining the formatting of our recipes, to labeling equipment, developing training materials, and onboarding staff. We are so thankful to have her heart and her talent in our corner!

Marketing Maven

Leslie Roepke

Meet Leslie Roepke, the creative genius behind Hot Choux Photography, renowned for her ability to turn everyday scenes into vibrant, story-filled images. Her passion for storytelling through the lens, paired with her heart for disability inclusion, having a sibling with a disability, made her the perfect person to capture our delectable treats.

Leslie has been one of our biggest cheerleaders from the very beginning and we are so thankful to have her help making us look irresistible.

Our Mission

“Your vocation is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet”- Frederick Buechner.

Barney’s Sweet Shop is on a mission to make life sweeter…..for all of us. We are passionate about creating gourmet treats that bring people together, while also creating meaningful work for people with disabilities. We believe that our passion for excellence in candy making and our heart for inclusion make the perfect pairing.

At Barney’s we believe that everyone has a seat at the table, a gift to share, and deserves the opportunity to thrive. When one of us wins, we all win. In that spirit we are committed to leveraging radically inclusive employment practices to create opportunity for upward economic mobility for our friends and neighbors in the disability community.

We have found that our friends with disabilities have tremendous equity, skill, insight, and strength to bring to the marketplace and we are thrilled to create a culture that intentionally creates opportunities for them to thrive. We know that any time we make any accommodations for our friends to be at their best, we are made better in the process.

Together we are making life sweeter one bite at a time.

Join our Team

Our Values

Inclusion
At Barney’s Sweet Shop, we are deeply committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace where everyone is valued and empowered. Our passion for equity drives us to create meaningful employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities, ensuring that each person has a chance to contribute and thrive. Our ultimate goal is to make gourmet popcorn while championing a culture of respect, inclusion, and equal opportunity.
Excellence
Excellence is at the heart of everything we do. We are committed to delivering the highest quality in every aspect of our work, consistently exceeding expectations through meticulous attention to detail, using high quality real ingredients, artisanal practices, continuous improvement, and a relentless pursuit of superior standards. At Barney’s we strive to always put our best foot forward, providing an exceptional customer experience with treats that they can be proud to share with friends and family far and wide.
Creativity
Our value for inclusion means we are fortunate to have an incredibly diverse team with a host of creative ideas that give us an edge against the competition.
Community
We are dedicated to building a strong, supportive community. We believe in the power of connection, collaboration, and actively engaging with and giving back to the communities we serve. Our commitment to community means fostering meaningful relationships and contributing to collective well-being and growth. We want to link arms with others who are passionate about building into one another to make our communities stronger and more inclusive for everyone.