Internet-savvy trend fiends can’t get enough of DailyCandy, the website that offers sweet as-Hershey’s-kisses secrets on a daily basis. The site offer tips on the hottest spas, shops, entertainment events and deliciously quirky goodies (custom-made wallpaper, anyone?) that are making cities like Atlanta, New York and Los Angeles a little tastier each day.

Dany Levy, founder of DailyCandy, honed her writing chops at Brown University, where she majored in English and earned honors in creative writing. Upon graduation, Dany’s phonetic flair landed her a stint at New York Magazine, where she created the glossy’s GothamStyle section. Moving on to girlier and more fashionable things, Dany joined Lucky magazine as a member of the shopping bible’s founding editorial staff. Finally, to satisfy her raging sweet tooth for all things new and hip, Dany founded DailyCandy in 2000. In a little over five years, Dany’s web confection has transformed from a sweet little upstart to a full-on media property that has half the nation hooked on Candy.

As fashionistas who can’t miss out on a single bite of Chicago’s DailyCandy, the Factio team was dying to meet the web-mistress extraordinaire. Recently, we caught up with her for a little candy talk.

FACTIO MAGAZINE: Give us an inside look at your career with DailyCandy and the new book, DailyCandy A to Z- an insider's guide to the sweet life.
DANY LEVY: The six years I have spent working on DailyCandy have been amazing -- I feel incredibly lucky to have created a brand that resonates so strongly with its subscribers, and feel even luckier to work with such a talented team. The entire DailyCandy staff is whip smart, funny, insanely dedicated, and a blast to work with every day. I love that DailyCandy makes its subscribers "in the know" with its concise, witty daily emails. It’s also tremendously satisfying that the people we feature get such a powerful reaction from our voraciously responsive readers. In that sense we have such a nice impact on the businesses we write about...young designers send us such touching feedback about how much attention, from both customers and other media, they got after being featured.

DailyCandy A to Z, our first book, is twenty-six short chapters, one for each letter of the alphabet, that encompass our perspective, our way of looking at the world. It’s about the little things that make life easier, more colorful, more interesting, and more fun. It’s not about rules or advice, and is definitely not preachy--we wrote in our typically playful and witty tone, about everything from how to survive fat days to being a good guest.

FM: What type of quality do you look for in new businesses or product in order to be featured in DailyCandy? What passes the Candy "cool" factor?
DL: DailyCandy isn't all about being "cool” or chasing trends. It's more about being plugged in to all the amazing, creative things people are cooking up, from new shops and websites to jewelry and dog shampoo. We make sure our readers know things first. We write about the things we love and hope that our readers will agree.

FM: Describe your signature style.
DL: I am ridiculously simple when it comes to my personal style. My default “uniform" is a pair of jeans and a black tank. That said, I have a wicked weak spot for shoes, so I suppose that is where my creative expression plays itself out.

FM: What are your personal favorite shops worldwide? (for anything from the home to beauty to accessories, etc)
DL: A rundown:
Agnes b.
Catherine Malandrino
Intuition in LA
Coco Ribbon in London
Christian Louboutin anywhere

FM: Where are some of your favorite places to travel and what do you always pick up for your wardrobe?
DL: I love so many places, and yet I love home best. It’s fun to scour the beauty section of pharmacies in different countries and discover new remedies and lotions and potions.

FM: What are you always on the hunt for?
DL: Anything that surprises me and makes me think.

FM: What women and men (from which city worldwide) have great style and why?
DL: Catherine Deneuve, because, well, she's Catherine Deneuve. Winona Ryder because she's just so darn cute. Ditto George Clooney.

FM: Do you think money and style go hand in hand or can style never be bought? Is it something you just have?
DL: A great sense of style pretty much comes from within. Sure, you can hire a stylist or mimic what you see in the pages of glossy magazines -- but somehow, if it isn't "you," it never quite comes off as genuine.

FM: What would people be most surprised to know about you?
DL: That I am a creature of habit who loves her sleep, her home, her daily routine of work, long runs, and hanging out with my good friends. I am basically a very simple creature.

FM: Did you know when you started Daily Candy that it would rise to the success that it has - a major web destination in several cities?
DL: I had no earthly clue that DailyCandy would become what it is today. I pinch myself almost every day.

FM: If you weren't in this business, where would you be?
DL: Likely I would be writing a novel or -- believe it or not -- teaching. I spent my college summers working with underprivileged kids at a camp in Rhinebeck New York called Ramapo and found it really gratifying.

FM: What tips would you give women and men in general to be well rounded, balancing out life and career? Any tips for other entrepreneurs?
DL: I'd be a liar if I said that I've mastered balance -- it's something I work on every day. But I do believe that being driven professionally should not preclude having a satisfying personal life -- I think that love trumps all, that everything happens for a reason, that you should treat other people the way you'd like to be treated. And no, my next project is not a self-help book.

As for the entrepreneurial path, wow, there are so many things to think about. Hire to cover your weaknesses, trust your instincts, learn to delegate, be humble and never underestimate the importance of sleep. And no, my next project is not a self-help book.

FM: Where do you see yourself and the company in five years? What more exciting things can we expect from Daily Candy?
DL: One step, at a time, one step at a time.