February 26, 2008
WOLFGANG CANDY COMPANY�S ALL-NATURAL PLUMP & JUICY DARK CHOCOLATE BERRIES NOW SELLING NATIONALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY
Press Contact: Mike Schmid
Managing Partner - Marketing
Wolfgang Candy Company, Inc.
Phone: 717.843.5536, Ext 140
E-mail: [email protected]
February 26, 2008����������������������������FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wolfgang Candy: Around the World in Thirty Days
Wolfgang Candy Company�s All-Natural Dark Chocolate Berries Now Selling Nationally and Internationally
YORK, PA. � Last month, Central Pennsylvania�s favorite confectioner, Wolfgang Candy Company, successfully expanded its candy sales both nationally and internationally. After eighty-seven years of selling its hometown, handmade quality chocolates to a regional marketplace, Wolfgang Candy has succeeded in distributing products through national and international retailers. With Wolfgang Candy�s introduction of its all-natural, plump & juicy dark chocolate Raspberries and Blueberries in 2006, and Cranberries in late 2007, Wolfgang Candy Partners knew these unique anti-oxidant rich chocolates would be the perfect product to market beyond Wolfgang�s traditional distribution channels. Wolfgang�s Berries are being sold nationally by Linens �n Things and internationally by Sakai Foods International.
Wolfgang Candy Now at Linens 'n Things
National retailer, Linens 'n Things, Inc., (LNT) headquartered in Clifton, New Jersey, selected Wolfgang Candy�s Berries as one of their regularly offered products to be featured near their checkout registers across America. As the biggest of the large-format retailers of home textiles, house wares and decorative home accessories in the United States, Linens �n Things will introduce Wolfgang Candy to destinations Wolfgang�s traditional channels have not reached in the past.
Mike Schmid, Managing Partner of Wolfgang Candy, met LNT's Buyer, Christina Pontilena, at the Fancy Food Show in New York. The LNT representatives loved the clever packaging of the Berry pouches and baskets and enthusiasm of the family-owned team representing Wolfgang at the show.
Pontilena said that she knew the dark, anti-oxidant rich fruit-filled chocolates would be a super product for LNT's discriminating customers. She continued, "I am truly amazed at the company's unique ability to preserve a whole berry in chocolate for one year. I have yet to see this amongst any chocolate manufacturer." Pontilena reported that the first weeks of Wolfgang Chocolate sales at Linens 'n Things went quite well and they are anticipating great success for this first quarter.
Schmid said, �I am delighted that the Berries have been welcomed by Linens �n Things customers because these dark chocolates pack more than attractive packaging, they are so very unique, and they are filled with delicious antioxidants and whole plump & juicy fruits.�
Wythe Will Distributing, LLC, is responsible for distributing Wolfgang�s Dark Chocolate Berries to LNT stores throughout the US. Wythe Will CEO, Gordon Angles, shared that he was "impressed with the cutting-edge packaging of the Berries pouches and their ability to capture a buyer's attention." Angles continued, "I recognize Wolfgang Candy's commitment to producing high quality chocolates that is enhanced by their creative berry packages. I expect they will be very appealing to consumers." In addition to Wolfgang Chocolates, the distributor ships over 6,000 unique items to more than 1,500 retail customers every week from their headquarters and climate controlled 100,000 square foot distribution center near Williamsburg, Virginia.
Wolfgang Candy Now in Japan
Wolfgang�s dark Chocolate Berries have also been selected by a Japanese company, Sakai Foods International to distribute to Japanese specialty markets. Wolfgang Candy was introduced to Sakai Foods International through Ron Davis of Bell Export Foods Group. Davis steers a PA Food Cooperative that includes 32 other PA companies, like Turkey Hill Dairies, Tastykake and Hatfield Quality Meats. During a food expo last March, eight business people from Osaka and Tokyo, led by Keiji Saiki visited the Pennsylvania Coop to select products to export to Japan. Mr. Saiki selected Wolfgang chocolates to be among the foods Sakai Foods International will distribute to Japanese specialty stores.
Mike Schmid commented, �We were honored to get to know Mr. Sakai, who took time from his whirlwind US tour to get to know the people behind the products his company has chosen to distribute. Doing so shows Sakai International�s commitment to bringing quality American products to their fine retailers.�
Mr. Sakai shared, �We are very excited to start business with Wolfgang Candy Company. When I first met with Mike Schmid and his brother Steve, it was at the mini-coop food show in Harrisburg in June 2007. At that time we were not looking for just nice food products from PA, we were looking for something "remarkable" for Japanese consumers. Our first impression of Wolfgang�s Berries chocolates was that they had all of the characteristics of that �remarkable� new product line we were seeking!�
Schmid shared, �Wolfgang Candy is proud to serve our fresh, all-natural chocolates to the international community as well as here at home. When my great grandmother Mima Mae Wolfgang was coating chocolate covered berries for the local church bizarre, she never would have imagined her family recipe chocolates traveling over 6,000 miles to delight international palates!�
About Wolfgang Candy
Founded in 1921, Wolfgang is one of the oldest family-owned and managed confectionery manufacturers in the United States. From peanut brittle to hollow chocolates, Wolfgang offers one of the most extensive arrays of high-quality chocolates and non-chocolate confections available in the marketplace. In addition to the all-natural dark chocolate dipped Raspberries, Blueberries and Cranberries, some of the company�s most popular products include a wide assortment of solid and hollow molded chocolates � bunnies at Easter and Santa at Christmas, and fine boxed chocolates � chocolate-covered pretzels and animal crackers, chocolate-covered peanut butter marshmallow treats (marshmallow and peanut butter covered in milk or dark chocolate), hand-dipped raisin and peanut clusters, and other assorted milk and dark chocolates. Wolfgang markets and distributes its products through retail, wholesale (private labeling and contract manufacturing), and fundraising sectors. The company is a market leader in the fundraising industry and a trusted name enabling organizations of any size to achieve their financial goals. With a sole focus on and commitment to its customers, Wolfgang demands unparalleled quality in its products, providing its customers with a truly enchanting experience in taste.
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