2009 All Candy Expo

Every year in May, the National Confectioners Association (NCA) has its All Candy Expo at McCormich Place. I am lucky enough to have this international event right here in the Glen Ellyn Sweet Shoppe's backyard. It is the industries main showcase for new products and concepts. While the Sweet Shop specializes in retro candy, the kids in Glen Ellyn know that their neighborhood candy store is where to find what's new. So not to disappoint, I head out to the All Candy Expo every year and sample way too much candy. I also bring back a load of samples to the store...hint....this is a good time to stop by, since I let give away these samples to my customers to get their opinions. So check back here in late May and I will give you the lowdown on what sort of sour, gooey, neon delight will soon be flying off the shelves. Some highlights from the 2008 show included...Gummi Lightning Bugs that really light up (very cool), the Pop Rocks Chocolate Bar (noisy, and kinda makes you drool), Skittles Crazy Cores (not very innovative, but they are awesome)

Gone but not Forgotten - The Candy R.I.P List

People love browsing though all the nostalgic retro candy that I have in my candy store. There are not too many places that carry Bun Bars, Mallo Cups, Zero Bars and Zagnuts like I do at the Glen Ellyn Sweet Shoppe. However, for every brand that has endured, there are many that have sadly been discontinued. Some of them, like Bubs Daddy Gum and the Chocolite Bar were my favorites. Check out this Gone but not Forgotten list and see if you can find your favorites.

• Bar None Candy Bar
• Bit-O-Licorice
• Black Cow
• Bonomo Turkish Taffy
• Bubs Daddy Gum
• Butternut Candy Bar
• Chicken Dinner Candy Bar
• Chocolite Candy Bar
• Chum Gum
• Dweebs Candy
• Forever Yours
• Hollywood Candy Bars
• Horlicks Malted Milk Tablets
• Marathon Candy Bar
• Milkshake Candy Bar
• Oompahs
• Pal Bubble Gum
• PB Max Candy Bar
• Powerhouse Candy Bar
• Rally Candy Bar
• Reggie Bar
• Seven Up Bar
• Ton-O-Gum
• Wacky Wafers
• Wax Mustache (I think this may be making a comeback)
• Whiz Bar
• Yoo-Hoo Chocolate Bar

These are just a few, and we can always hope that they come back some day. Ok, maybe not the Chicken Dinner Bar. That came out at a time when candy bars, like Baby Ruth, were marketed as healthy, inexpensive meal replacements. Aahh, the good old days. I don't think that we can get away with that anymore. More on strange candy marketing campains is coming soon. In the mean time, check out the nostalgic candy at the Glen Ellyn Sweet Shoppe.

Retro Candy - Fun Facts about your Favorites

Fans of retro candy often walk into my old-fashioned candy store, the Glen Ellyn Sweet Shoppe, and, upon seeing the shelves and bins of their favorite candies, get a bit nostalgic and are quick to share a sweet memory from their past. I have heard that Necco Wafers fit nicely into toll booths in lieu of quarters and that many of us have gotten into trouble with a Bubble Gum Cigarette pressed between our lips as the sugar-smoke wafted into the air. Not to be outdone, today's kids have some pretty explosive stories about the curious mixture of Diet Coke and Mantos. With the sweetly nostalgic, long-term relationship between candy-lovers and their favorite sweets in mind, I present some fun facts you may not know.

• In the early 1990s, Mr. T became the spokesperson for Smarties candy and the Children's Defense Fund charity. The ads showed him wearing candy jewelry instead of his trademark gold.
• The original Mary Jane candies were produced in Paul Revere's former home in Boston.
• The Snickers bar was named for the Mars family's favorite horse.
• Baby Ruth is named for Grover Cleveland's daughter, not the baseball player.
• Milton Hershey envisioned the town he was building around his Pennsylvania plant to be a chocolate utopia. It officially became known as Hershey, PA in 1906 when a post office was built.
• Hershey Kisses were introduced in 1907, but it wasn't until 1921 that the thin white strip was added to distringuish the Hershey product from copycats.
• The 1941 package of Wrigley's Juicy Fruit Gum stated, "A Fascinating Artificial Flavor".
• During WWII, the Wrigley Company suspended production of its gum, because of quiality concerns due to rations of sugar and other ingredients.
• Bubble gum is pink because it was the only color on hand and the Fleer Company the day that bubble gum was accidentily created, when an accountant for the company was experimenting with a rubber formula.
• M&M stands for the candy's inventors Forrest Mars and Bruce Murrie. The debuted in 1941 and were loved by WWII GIs because they did not melt.
• The "BB" in BB Bats candy actually stands for "bigger and better", depsite the children playing baseball on the wrapper.
• The Mars Bars was first introduced in the U.K. in 1932 as a sweeter, European version of the Milky Way bar.
• Blackjack Gum, the licorice flavored chewing gum that made millions of kids look like they lost a tooth, is sadly no longer available.
• 3 Musketeers bars originally contained 3 mini candy bars - one vanilla, one chocolate and one strawberry - hence the name. When cost of making the strawberry piece became too high, the makers switched to one vanilla bar. The bar was still scored in 2 places so that it could be shared with 2 friends.
• Good & Plenty ads used to tout the fact that little boys will like the noise the box makes.
• From 1974-1981, the Marathon Bar enjoyed a brief but memorable life. The 8-inch bar had a ruler on its wrapper, and its ads featured the hunky "Marathon Man" portrayed by John Wayne's son. The similar-looking Curly Wurly bar can still be found in the U.K., but rumor has it, the tasted is not the same.
• Now to add some confusion..in the U.K., Snickers are known as Marathon bars, because the name is too close the word "knickers".
• Without the sour candy coating, Sour Patch Kids taste just like Swedish Fish

I hope you enjoyed learning these facts as much as I enjoyed digging them up. Stay tuned to this site for more Candy Notes. Coming soon...Gone but not forgotten