Pearson's Candy Company

Pearson's Candy Companyis an Americanchocolateandconfectionerymanufacturer headquartered inSaint Paul,Minnesota.  Founded as a confectionerydistributionfirm in 1909, the company began to manufacture its own products in 1912.  Originally a family-owned company, Pearson's experienced changes in ownership, acquisitions and product alterations in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, before its most recent sale in November 2018 toSpell Capital, a Minneapolis private equity firm.
Pearson's products are produced on five production lines in the company's Saint Paul plant.  The company sells its Mint Patties andSalted Nut Rollnationally and itsNut GoodieandBun Barsproducts in severalMidwesternstates.  As of 2018, Pearson's was estimated to be the 42nd largest confectionery company in North America by revenue.
Pearson's Candy Company was founded as a confectionery distribution firm in 1909 by P. Edward Pearson and his brothers, John and Oscar.  Two more brothers, Waldemar and C. Fritz, joined the company several years later.By 1935, W. G. Pearson was president of the firm.The five brothers determined manufacturing would be more profitable than distribution and, in 1912, introduced their first confection, theNut Goodie.
Pearson's grew and began manufacturing for other companies, including Whitmans andPlanters.  Pearson's introduced theSalted Nut Rollin 1933, at the height ofThe Great Depression.The success of the Salted Nut Roll prompted other manufacturers to mimic the confection.  Pearson's subsequently changed the roll's name to the Choo Choo Bar, to distinguish the product.  The Choo Choo name, however, was not as successful, and the original name was restored with the Pearson'slogomore prominently displayed.
By the end ofWorld War II, the Pearson brothers had dropped the distribution aspect of the business.  The youngest brother, William Pearson, joined the family business in 1944, as did George Pearson, son of founder P. Edward Pearson.  In 1951, Pearson's acquired the Trudeau Candy Company, which brought Mint Patties and the Seven Up bar to Pearson's product line.  The company moved to a new manufacturing plant at its current address in 1959.In 1962, Pearson's acquiredMilwaukee-based Sperry Candy Company, a company known for its Chicken Dinner Bar.  Pearson's, however, sold Sperry Candy to the Schuler Chocolate Factory ofWinona, Minnesotafive years later.
The Pearson family sold the company in 1968 toITT/Continental Baking, aNew Yorkfirm.  ITT/Continental Baking sold the company to an out-of-state confectionery partnership in 1979. During this time, sales declined due to problems with availability and product changes, such as awrapperredesign andrecipechange of the Nut Goodie.
In 1985, the company was purchased by Larry Hassler and Judith Johnston.  The company's previous owners had split up, causing thebankto offer the company in theleveraged buyout.  The Nut Goodie's original wrapper and recipe were restored and, despite the loss of a label contract withGeneral Millsto produce Nature Valleygranolabars, which accounted for 1.4 million bars daily and 85 percent of the company's total tonnage, Pearson's became profitable again in December 1992.In early 1998, Pearson's acquired the Bun Bar trademark fromClark Bar America. Pearson's introduced Flurries in 2004.
In August 2011, Pearson's was acquired byBrynwood Partners IV, who sold their interest in Pearson's Candy toSpell Capitalof Minneapolis, in November 2018.
In 2022, Pearson's was sold to theAnnabelle Candy Companyin Hayward, California.
Salted Nut Rolls are the company's best selling product,and together with Mint Patties account for approximately 80 percent of the company's sales.Mint Patties are sold nationally and Salted Nut Rolls are available in approximately 60 percent of the company's outlets.  In late 2013, Pearson's acquired theBit-O-Honeybrand from Nestle USA, Inc.Although the company sells its products primarily in the United States, it has ranked among the largest confectionery companies in the world,and as of 2018, was estimated to be the 42nd largest confectionery company in North America by revenue.
In December 2020, Pearson's Candy sold theBit-O-Honeybrand toSpangler Candy Company
Pearson's utilizes 200 tons ofpeanuts, 400 tons ofsugar, 100 tons ofchocolateand 350 tons ofcorn syrupper month.  Products are produced in the company's 120,000 sq ft (11,000 m) plant on five production lines.Current products include:
The Seven Up Bar was acandy barcomprising seven different chocolate "pillows", each filled with a differentflavor.  Flavors changed with the availability and popularity of ingredients, which included, among others,brazil nut,buttercream,butterscotch, caramel,cherry,coconut, fudge, mint, nougat andorange.The high manufacturing costs andtrademarkissues with asodamanufacturer (The American Bottling Company, todayKeurig Dr Pepper), caused the bar to be retired in 1979.
TheChicken Dinner Barhad been a product of the Sperry Candy Company, which was acquired by Pearson's in 1962. The bar, introduced during The Great Depression, was so called in reference to PresidentHerbert Hoover’s promise of “a chicken in every pot”.The bar did not containchickenor otherpoultryproducts, but was, rather, a chocolate-coverednutroll. Pearson's discontinued the bar's production after the acquisition.Early TV commercials sang "Chick - Chick - Chick - Chick - Chicken Dinner" similar to, and in the cadence of a rooster crowing.
44°54′23″N93°9′27″W﻿ / ﻿44.90639°N 93.15750°W﻿ /44.90639; -93.15750