Candy History

Peerless Quality Confection Since 1914 – RIP

January 26, 2007 by

It came as a complete shock but effective 15 February,2007, one of America’s oldest candy manufacturers will be closing it’s doors leaving a void in the domestically produced bulk candy industry. Truth be told, few saw this coming and below is an excerpt from their letter as to the reasons as to why they are ceasing production…

January 12, 2007

TO OUR VALUED CUSTOMERS

We regret to announce that Peerless Confectionary Company, manufacturer of quality hard candies in Chicago, Illinois, since 1924, will cease operations effective April 30, 2007. Declining consumption of hard candy and the increasing prevalence of imports and offshore production are two major factors influencing our decision. To remain competitive in this environment would require us to move our facility offshore, which is not an option we are willing to consider. To do so would betray our tradition of quality and our commitment to our family of workers.

For 93 years Peerless has been proud to offer our customers the finest quality hard candies made in America. That tradition will continue until the last piece of candy is produced….”

While their candies will surely be missed, we have been told that there will be some marvelous condos available in the “former candy factory…”

It’s an interesting thought experiment to consider how much of their closing is truly due to the hard state of the candy biz these days, and how much of it is due to the financial benefits from selling the business to build these condos. Writing this from Pittsburgh it’s hard not to think of all of the amazing things here that have closed down and been turned into condos (the legendary rock club Laga comes quickly to mind), and Chicago is another city with a lot of history that’s suffering from the same sort of urban ennui. Whatever the motivation for Peerless Candy’s withdrawal, it’s a shame that another locally-owned company is throwing in the towel. And really, aren’t there enough luxury condos?

You Might Also Like

41 Comments

  • Reply DAVID KLEIN February 15, 2007 at 12:34 am

    without a doubt the best root beer barrel that has ever been made

  • Reply Rich Smales April 30, 2007 at 6:24 pm

    What a shame this is. As a former employee of the company, it is sad to this company go by the board. Not only the best Root Beer Barrel ever made, but hands down the best Starlight Mint ever made, anywhere.

    PIR Peerless.

  • Reply Rich Smales April 30, 2007 at 6:26 pm

    The best Starlight Mint ever made, anywhere, hands down.

    As a former employee I can still remember the smell of peppermint oil drifting through the factory.

    RIP Peerless, thanks for allowing me to start my career in the confectionery industry there.

  • Reply Brittany July 24, 2007 at 2:11 pm

    I just moved to Chicago, and i live near the factory. I am really sad to see this factory close. It makes me heartbroken to see this wonderful factory that produced so many amazing candies be turned into condos. Stupid.

  • Reply Frank August 6, 2007 at 12:42 am

    I also live on the train route…it’s a real shame to see Peerless close. I wish my nephew and niece got a chance to see the train coming through my parking lot.

  • Reply Phyllis August 9, 2007 at 4:38 pm

    Just wanted to tell you I am so sorry to hear Peerless candy is out of business….They had the most delicious root beer floats candy I have ever had, and I shall miss them dearly.

  • Reply Marc September 6, 2007 at 7:09 pm

    That’s all folks….
    Not only is it the end of a great candy company, but really the end of the Lakewood spur manufacturing district.
    where oh where have all the jobs gone, oh where have they gone?
    Trading American made goods and wealth for condos and chinese goods.

  • Reply Vicki October 24, 2007 at 7:08 am

    I am simply heartbroken. Each year, I have waited in great anticipation of ordering Peerless’ delicious chocolate-filled straws, and this year I was going to add Chocolate-filled Sprig-o-mints to the order. Since the straws were only available during the Christmas season (Nov – Feb), I order enough to last the year. This time, when I sent my order in (I was later than usual) they order was processed. Days later, I received an email saying they were out of stock and didn’t know when they would have more. I thought I just missed the deadline by a day, but now I know they were probably already shutting down. I wish they had told me this, so I wouldn’t have been so anxious for November to get here. When I went to the website I have ordered them from and saw the notice that they had ceased operations, I was dumbfounded.

    I can’t imagine never having this delightful candy again. I tried another company’s chocolate-filled straws once, but I didn’t like them.

    Peerless, thank you so much for all the decades I enjoyed your candies. I will miss them dearly.

    Best of luck in all you do.

  • Reply Lorie Volkman November 24, 2007 at 1:31 am

    I am so sad to see Peerless go. I loved the root beer candies, but my favorites were those honey filled candies. I am glad to know that I am not the last lover of hard candies. If they want to sell equipment and recipe for the honey candies, I know a few of us bee keepers could get together and start marketing those. I would like to give it a go. Seems so sad to loose the tradition.

  • Reply Helen November 29, 2007 at 5:56 pm

    Yes, Rich, Peerless Confection gave a start in candy life to many devoted employees. Our Peerless family was devastated by it’s closing operations, cause we truly were a big candy family and we were treated like a family. We will never forget the goodness of the owners and how many people they helped over 94 years in business. We thank them from the bottom of all our hearts for all they did for us till the very end. It is very sad to see such a wonderful company go but I guess it was time. However what I think it’s even sadder that only Rway Confections, Long Grove Confectionery and Georgia Nut and couple out of state candy companies offered jobs to ex-Peerless employees. Having so many chocolate and candy companies still in business in Chicago, it’s a shame that only those few extended helping hand to hard working, devoted and loyal ex-Peerless people. Peerless people – you were the best and I wish you good luck in all you do cause we really were Peerless in every way.

  • Reply Tony November 30, 2007 at 3:13 pm

    This is really bad news for Christmas candy traditionalists…the worst news since Brach’s stopped making alot of their oldtime hard candy (ie. those little pillows)due to overseas operations. The Black Walnut Chips are rare and priceless. The Vermont Country Store has some in stock, presumably Peerless, so get’em while you can ’cause you may NEVER see them again. No black walnut candy of any kind!!!!

  • Reply j d nelson November 30, 2007 at 5:12 pm

    i saw several kinds i love but the black walnut chips are my favorite

  • Reply A fan of hard candy December 6, 2007 at 12:54 pm

    This is heartbreaking. This was the only company who made honeycombed filled peanut candies. We have been eating these during the holiday since I was a child. I has been getting harder each year to find these and now they are gone.

    Sorry to see they had to shut down.

  • Reply Lorie G December 23, 2007 at 9:59 pm

    I’m so sad about this too. I was looking all over for those honeycombed hard peanut candies with the peanut butter filling….and then I came upon this news… Now, we will never have those again and it is such a bummer. It’s so sad that this would happen, and now the younger generations will never know the candies we grew up with. I wish I could have found better news at the end of my search for the peanuts.

    God bless you…

  • Reply Dave January 24, 2008 at 4:15 am

    I believe they were the only producer of the peanut butter filled peanut shaped hard candy. It is a shame. Now that my kids are old enough I had them all excited to try the candy I grew up with… what a dissapointment.

  • Reply jann May 16, 2008 at 11:35 pm

    does anyone remember Mr. Kayloris, one of the first superintendents of Peerless Candy? His son, Johnny, was my dad’s best friend growing up in Chicago in the 1920’s. My dad is now 86 years old and still talks about how delicious the candy was.

  • Reply Jesus Garcia April 19, 2009 at 2:05 am

    I worked for this great Company for almost 18 yrs. I am sad since our company went out of business but in the other hand I am so proud to be a part of the history of this unique company
    Thanks for all these wonderful comments.

    Jesus Garcia

  • Reply alleyrulez July 22, 2009 at 2:37 pm

    the Rods were awesome. very sad to see them go. living in Texas, I would order them online. hadn’t had them in a while, and was shocked to hear that they had been closed for a while. very sad.

  • Reply mister_beebe August 8, 2009 at 4:10 pm

    Major bummer! Their filled raspberries have been a special family treat with us for nearly 40 years.

  • Reply Evleyn Rutkowski September 8, 2009 at 6:28 pm

    The Christmas candy was fantastic Christmas will never be the same.
    How sad.

  • Reply Rich Mark October 9, 2009 at 12:21 am

    I\’m hooked on their anise hard candy, best on the planet, tried others they don\’t even come close. Is there a company that uses their ingrediants?

  • Reply Patricia Bleha November 3, 2009 at 12:21 am

    I remember as a young girl with my family in the 1950s getting a private tour of the factor by the then head engineer. He was a jolly old man who devoted much of his life to the Peerless Candy Company. Often to the dismay of his wife, he would pin engineering drawings on the dining room draperies as well as have them sprawled all over the dining room table. My favorite candies were the sour fruit balls which he gave us after demonstrating how some of the machines operated. I was able to buy the candy until a few years ago here in California at Vons. I had hoped to buy some on the Internet since I hadn\\\’t seen it in the stores for awhile. Now I know why.

  • Reply Patricia Bleha November 3, 2009 at 12:24 am

    I remember as a young girl with my family in the 1950s getting a private tour of the factor by the then head engineer. He was a jolly old man who devoted much of his life to the Peerless Candy Company. Often to the dismay of his wife, he would pin engineering drawings on the dining room draperies as well as have them sprawled all over the dining room table. My favorite candies were the sour fruit balls which he gave us after demonstrating how some of the machines operated. I was able to buy the candy until a few years ago here in California at Vons. I had hoped to buy some on the Internet since I hadn’t seen it in the stores for awhile. Now I know why.

  • Reply pattie March 22, 2010 at 2:34 am

    peerless black walnut were the best! to my knowledge, hammond candies also makes them…

  • Reply marilyn petrik June 26, 2010 at 5:03 pm

    I have a Peerless Confections candy tin approx ggallon size. This tin was found in an old abandoned horse barn in the Colo. Rockys. Most likely it was left there by a miner. It is in pretty good shape and we had it made into a lamp. I would be interested in finding a buyer. My phone number is posted above in the website box. Marilyn PEtrik

  • Reply Rick A February 15, 2011 at 9:56 am

    Peerless starlite mints were the very best. Great company with wonderful employees. They were a former account I supported and I happened to mention that my grandmother loved their starlite mints (I did too). From then on, every time I visited the factory on business, they remembered my grandmother and had a huge care-package already prepared for her. How thoughtful! It meant a lot to her and it meant a lot to me. I\’ve known for a few years but it\’s still sad that such a great Chicago/ American company with great products is gone.

  • Reply Christene H November 25, 2012 at 5:06 pm

    My heart really misses the good old filled Christmas candy. Was and is nothing like them.

  • Reply Don Burck December 16, 2012 at 3:19 pm

    It is almost Christmas. I think of candy at Christmas time. I owned Burst’s Candies in Corvallis Oregon from 1972-1993. When I bought the store the seller told me that I should only carry Peerless Candies for my hard line as it was the best. The red part of the starlite mints melted at the same rate as the white part, thus no rough edges. Besides the taste, that is the test of a good mint hard candy!! Thanks for the memories!!

  • Reply Teresa Smith October 28, 2013 at 10:26 pm

    My favorite candy in the whole world was the Peerless chocolate filled straws. They were such a treat every year at Christmas time and I tried to buy up lots of extra bags to last me for months. I have tried 2 brands of these since Peerless closed down, and neither one measured up! I wish Peerless would sell their recipe for the straws to someone and they would start making them again! That would be wonderful!!!

  • Reply karol casper October 26, 2014 at 7:23 pm

    Your mixed candy is missed by all at The Admirals Club!!! Especailly the Butterscotch!!!

  • Reply ana caban martinez November 16, 2014 at 9:37 pm

    I remember my dad working at peerless around the 70 we use to live right across the streetmy dad’s name was Carlos he loved his job .

  • Reply BJ January 29, 2015 at 3:37 pm

    Does anyone know what year Peerless Candy opened their doors on Lakewood Street? They were not always on Lakewood Street.

    B ~

  • Reply Verna Sprouse December 17, 2015 at 7:23 am

    would love to find a recipe for the black walnut chip candy. anyone have one?

  • Reply Russ August 5, 2016 at 4:38 pm

    Do you remember the Peerless Dr. B Happy “Candy Pills” novelty candy?!

  • Reply D Garrett October 10, 2016 at 12:22 pm

    This was brought on by hurricane Katrina and Rita in 2005. They practically wiped out the sugar cane crop. Sugar prices went up, the government subsidized the sugar farmers and protected them by not allowing candy companies to import cheaper foreign sugar. As a result you will find most all hard sugar candy is now made in Mexico, Central America and Canada. Check out the packages, Life Savers are made in Mexico now.

  • Reply Terrence Carbonara January 14, 2020 at 2:28 pm

    I’m sorry to say I never thought to inquiry about Peerless over the years. This being a melancholy time in my life due to January being my deceased fathers’ birthday month, I was discussing my dad to my wife. My wife said, ” How did your dad meet your mom?” I replied, “As the story goes, he was employed at Peerless Confectionery when he introduced himself to a fairly new 19 yr. old employee. A year later they married – 1 yr. later, a son was born.” Dad received his standard gold watch after 25 yrs. and moved on to a new chapter in our lives. By the way, I failed to mention my first remembrance of where we lived when dad worked for Peerless was at Lincoln Ave.- George St. apartrment building across the street from Armour Packing Co. Dad walked down the railroad tracks to Lakewood – Schubert every day.
    Love the memories!

    • Reply Jonah Half January 17, 2020 at 1:37 pm

      That’s a great story and we greatly appreciate your sharing. Peerless is just one of many iconic American candy companies that have shut their doors. The memories continue but, sadly, the candies do not.

  • Reply Carter O'Brien December 26, 2020 at 10:29 pm

    I grew up at 1327 Wolfram, it was such a different and IMO better neighborhood back when the Lakewood spur was actively serving industries like Peerless.

    If there are any company archives with pix of the neighborhood over the years I would *love* to see them.

    Thank you for the memories and being a part of a real Chicago working class neighborhood.

    Carter

  • Reply David Crespo November 21, 2021 at 6:34 pm

    My dad Carmelo Crespo worked for Peerless for 43 years, I used to love the smell of candy as he walked into the door from work . Loved the honey candy with the bee molded on it .

  • Reply Cindy November 25, 2021 at 11:44 am

    My grandma Violet worked here. My mother always used to get free candy when her mom came home. I grew up with this candy in the 60s and 70s and I miss it dearly.

  • Reply Lance Grey June 2, 2023 at 5:08 pm

    I lived nearby and played on the tracks in the ’60s like it was my back yard. It was sad to see them go after seeing the Milwaukee Road trains Pickup & deliver twice a week for as log as I can remember. Funny how I used to think the Peerles Maid illustration on the wall was a lady holding a Bumble-bee. Ha! I know now it was a striped peppermint. 😉

  • Leave a Reply