Buttercream squeezed between two cookie shells. That’s a macaron.
While macarons are traditionally French, you don’t need to jump on a plane to get your hands on this soft and chewy pastry. You can get them in downtown Midland at O’MACARON’s newly opened storefront, next to Crepes Et Amis on Townsend Street — if they haven’t run out yet.
Owner Kodi O’Mara opened the store Saturday, Feb. 6. Just over three hours after opening, she completely sold out of macarons.
![]()
O’MACARON celebrated the grand opening of their storefront on Saturday, Feb. 6. The shop is located in downtown Midland at 128 Townsend St.
“It was amazing,” says O’Mara. “It was unlikely anything I could have anticipated or expected.”
There are 19 flavors on the menu right now. Their most popular flavors are lemon, birthday cake, white chocolate raspberry, vanilla, cinnamon toast crunch, and oreo.
![]()
The menu boasts 19 unique flavors of macarons. Each month, O’Mara tries out six new flavors. If they do well, they might be added to the permanent menu.Each month, O’Mara will try out six new flavors. For February, those flavors are vanilla conversation hearts, lemon basil, dark chocolate raspberry, white chocolate strawberry, cotton candy, and sangria. If the flavors do well, they might get added to the main menu.
O’Mara was inspired to make macarons after watching baking shows.
“They just seemed so intricate and delicate and hard to make, which is true,” says O’Mara. “And I love a good challenge.”
Besides buttercream, macarons are made with egg whites and almond flour so they’re naturally gluten free. O’Mara sees macarons as a creative outlet — experimenting with different flavors of buttercream and different looks.
“I love being really creative and just doing different, kind of crazy, stuff,” says O’Mara.
Instead of pivoting, O’Mara got baking
![]()
When she was getting started, her husband Shane would help with the Farmers Market booth on Saturdays. Now, his contribution is mostly moral and emotional support.O’Mara had just finished graduate school and received her license as an occupational therapist (OT). But due to the pandemic, employment opportunities were sparse.
“I hadn’t even started my career yet. … I was ready to work, and the whole world shut down,” says O’Mara.
Since she didn’t see anyone specializing in macarons in Midland, O’Mara saw it as an opportunity to bring something different. And so, O’MACARON was born in May 2020 at the Midland Area Farmers Market. She only planned to sell them until she was able to join the workforce as an OT.
But the first weekend she took the macarons to the market, she sold out. She quickly realized that she could sustain herself with this business full-time.
“I just realized that entrepreneurship was my passion and I want to be doing this anyway,” says O’Mara. “It was kind of a business from the get-go, I guess, I just didn’t expect it at this capacity.”
While O’Mara manages O’MACARON on her own, her friends and family have been supportive.
When she was getting started, her husband Shane would help with the Farmers Market booth on Saturdays. Now, his contribution is mostly moral and emotional support. To assist with baking, O’Mara has recruited her mother to work three days of the week.
“We have so much fun. I get my creativity from her, I think,” says O’Mara, “so to be able to be creative together and work on new flavors together and all of that fun stuff — we just have a blast. We really do.”
![]()
To keep up with the demand, O’Mara will be hiring more staff. Eventually, she would like to be open every day of the week. To keep up with the demand, O’Mara will be hiring more staff. There’s only enough workforce to bake macarons for one business day, which means for now, they’re only open on Saturdays. Eventually, she would like to be open every day of the week.
“The community is just incredible, especially in downtown Midland … It's like a whole ‘nother community down here,” says O’Mara. “The support and camaraderie is really incredible.”
If you can’t stop into the store during their hours of 9 a.m.-3 p.m. on Saturdays, O’MACARON also accepts pickup orders. They even do orders for special occasions such as weddings or virtual baby showers.
Check out their website for ordering information or follow their Facebook page for updates (and tasty photos)!