![]() ![]() While no other Minnesota candy company has come close to Mars’ success, we make enough of the sweet stuff here to rank ninth nationally in sales from candy manufacturing. Now it’s the largest candy maker in the United States. chocolate and candy industry,” says Olivia Tang, an analyst at IBIS World.Ī little-known fact: Mars, the maker of Milky Way and Snickers candy bars and M&Ms, actually got its start in Minnesota before moving to Chicago decades ago. “Four companies - Hershey’s, Mars, Nestlé, and Kraft - have more than half of the percentage market share of the U.S. candy sales, estimated at $22.3 billion in 2012, according to IBIS World, an independent research information service. Combined, Minnesota candy plants employ an estimated 1,110 people and generate roughly $138 million in annual plant sales, according to the National Confectioners Association, a trade group based in Washington, D.C. There are at least 35 candy companies in Minnesota making everything from handmade caramels to licorice to gourmet specialty chocolates. “The idea is to invest in the company and see it grow, both organically and through targeted acquisitions,” says Keller, who was chief marketing officer at Edina-based International Dairy Queen before coming to Pearson’s in 2011. Brynwood Partners plans to make Pearson’s a platform for additional candy company or brand acquisitions, and the company’s 120,000-square-foot facility offers plenty of room to grow. ![]() In August 2011 Brynwood Partners VI, a private equity fund based in Greenwich, Connecticut, acquired the company. Edward Pearson and his brothers John and Oscar in 1909. Pearson’s has had several owners since its founding by P. Proximity to raw ingredients, to some of the nation’s top retailers, and to the Twin Cities transportation hub make Minnesota a sweet spot for candy making. With 150 total employees (110 in the plant), Pearson’s is the largest candy company based in Minnesota. Another shiny sheet of caramel is laid on top, and the sweet-smelling pieces are rolled together, then cut into bars. Nougat centers for the company’s flagship product, Salted Nut Rolls, are fed one after another onto a bronzed sheet of caramel resting on a layer of peanuts. Just outside, workers “enrobe” Mint Patties, Nut Goodies, and Bun Bars in chocolate, creating little swirls of chocolate on top of the Buns. Everything is white: the workers’ uniforms, the molds, the candy centers, and the fine, white cornstarch dust that settles over everything. The production floor includes the starch room, which is like entering heaven. ![]() Machines lightly spray the peanuts with oil, sprinkle them with salt, and send them tumbling down a large, round tube to the lower-level production floor of the two-story candy factory. “It’s like a caramel waterfall - all you want to do is stick your head in it,” says Keller.Ī one-ton bag hanging from the ceiling feeds the finest Virginia roasted peanuts into a filter that spills them onto a conveyor belt as a worker busily pulls out those with even a hint of overroasting. Inside, a huge stainless steel drum churns the soft, cool-tasting centers for Mint Patties, while liquid caramel is drizzled onto a giant, stainless steel cooling roller. Keller, a Gen Xer in well-worn charcoal-colored jeans (“It’s casual Friday,” he explains) dons a white hairnet, and the doors of Minnesota’s largest and one of its oldest candy companies swing open. Michael Keller, the company’s president and CEO, arrives not in a top hat and purple velvet frock coat like Wonka, but just as eager to show off his workshop. Paul might not be an exact replica of the whimsical workshop made famous in the movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. The Pearson Candy Company on West Seventh Street in St. Photo by Travis Anderson Pearson’s CEO Michael Keller ![]()
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