How I met Governor Quinn

Last week I wrote how Meeting the Governor was one of the seasons top 5. Why you may ask?

Since this is not a political piece it has nothing to do with the governor himself. It had more to do with the venue which I met the Governor at and why I met the Governor, and the fact that the booth and I were on the Channel 9 News for a brief moment. Too bad it was not a flattering shot of me or a great shot of the products but if you want to watch the clip its on my youtube channel about 50 seconds into the clip.

For the last two years we have been participated in the Aids Foundation of Chicago's World of Chocolate. The event is a great opportunity for me to get outside of our normal network and meet new and interesting people.

This year we did something a little different -- the event was during Hanukkah so I thought it would be nice to have a table with a seasonal  theme of Hanukkah and Christmas.

All was good we were ready for event and then my wife heard that Civil Unions were going to become legal in Illinois. It was time to act quickly the event was the next day.

I called my friends at the sign store and and had them make a quick congratulations sign. Then I raided our display case. In May 2010 we debuted our LGBT friendly cake toppers.

Our goal as a business is to be inclusive whether it be for those with allergies / dietary restrictions such as Sugar Free, Gluten Free, Lactose / Casein Free, for those in the LGBT community as well as other communities outside of the traditional Jewish Community that Kosher stores normally cater to.

The life of the candy man is sweet, I get to go to fun events, meet interesting people and to paraphrase  Sammy Davis I mix it with love and make the world taste good this candy man can.

Have a sweet and healthy new year to all.

Twas the day before ...

Chocolate Covered Christmas Pretzels

- Lactose & Casein Free

Twas the day before Christmas, the biggest gifting time of the year thanks to Hanukkah and Christmas. Whether you are Jewish, Christian, Muslim or an Atheist we all love the extended shopping hours the season offers, the big sales at the chain stores, spending time with our family and friends. As I sit here trying to come up with an interesting and relevant blog the following occurred to me, five (5) distinct things happened around the store this past month or so.

Here is the the Life of the Candy Man's Top Five of the Holiday Season; not in any particular order:

This Chocolate Light is life-sized

-5- Helping several new corporate clients brand themselves in chocolates from chocolate shoes to chocolate light bulbs just to name a few.  Seeing their face or hearing the smile through the phone or through an email makes the long hours worth while.

-4- Our newest customer a six year old little boy who happened to have a Jewish teacher. During Hanukkah the teacher brought in Hanukkah Gelt or "chocolate coins" to his class. The little boy is allergic to Casein and this was his first experience with chocolate. The teacher told the mom about our store and a family outing took place. The look on his face when he saw all the Lactose Free, Casein Free, and Pareve choices he had was priceless.

-3- Meeting the Governor of Illinois. (look for a blog next week)

Semi Sweet Coffee Toffee Bark. Our
newest bark. We take our own hand
made toffee and mix it with freshly
gound coffee to create this mouth
watering confection.

-2- A few new confections.  From Lactose free Casein Free Christmas Pretzels to our new Coffee Toffee Bark.

-1- During Hanukkah a family came to the store. The parent's present to each the kids was that each one could get a few of anything in the store. There were four kids ranging in age from about 2 - 10 or so. The older three got a combination of count items, jaw breaker and pucker powder. Then this little girl walks over to a Yum Yum bag and proceeds to pick up this four and half pound bag of candy. The parents had quite a time convincing the little girl that this was not an option. She eventually got what her big sister got.

The Life of the Candy Man is a sweet one.

Yum Yum Bag makes a great gift for any
occasion. Includes ju ju fish, laffy taffy,
candy corn, cherry sours, & red bites; or
customize your own.

Happy Holidays to all and if you don't or celebrate any of the holidays this past month I hope you enjoyed the extra time off of work, the sweet treats around the office and the sales.

Have a sweet weekend!

Snow and the Blood Drive

Our blood drive was yesterday and it was a cold snowy day. The bad weather along with a bunch of people having colds etc kept down our donations a bit this year.

On the plus size those who came enjoyed some yummy treats even if LifeSource disqualified them.

Thank you again to all of you were so gracious to donate your time and blood and a special thank to the 2010 Mrs. Illinois Jennifer Naida who helped recruit customers to become donors as well as showed support to the donors on the bus.

So for those who missed yesterday never fear you can always go to a local LifeSource location and give them the code 146B that is the same as if you were on the bus. Need to find a location near you click this link to find a location near you.

Every day may not be a sunny day in Life of the Candy Man but every day is a sweet one. 

New Lactose and Casein Free Products

Lactose Free/Casein

Free Chocolate Covered

Holiday Pretzels

It's been a bit nutty here at the Illinois Nut & Candy store, and it is safe to say that the "life of the candy man" has been happily exhausting the last few weeks.

Just wanted to post about two exciting new treats for those who can't eat Lactose or Casein.

For years those ever popular Christmas pretzels have been a treat that everyone loves. Only, one little problem: they have food coloring and they are covered in a milk based coating.

So, thanks to the advice of my five year old son, we now offer a treat that is perfect for those who can't have food coloring as well as those who, for various health reasons can't process Lactose or Casein.

White Chocolate Holiday

Pretzels (Lactose and

Casein Free)

For the time first at Illinois Nut & Candy and possibly the world, Raising the Candy Bar (our online store) is proud to introduce Lactose Free/Casein Free Christmas Pretzels.

Happy Sweet Holidays!

P.S. Our 3rd Annual LifeSource Blood Drive is this Sunday December 12, 2010, from 10:30am - 3:30PM. And now through Dec 31st you can SAVE BIG on all or your holiday purchases from Illinois Nut & Candy.

Save 10% Off your Holiday Purchases

From now through Dec 31st you can SAVE BIG on all or your holiday purchases from Illinois Nut & Candy.

Deluxe Mini Pretzel Rods

• Send a freshly popped jumbo tin of our Caramel Kettlecorn with Chocolate Drizzle.
• Give life to your holiday office party with a deluxe platter of Mini Pretzel Rods or our most sensational Grand Party Platter.
• Choose from several Christmas and Hannukah themed chocolates.
• Create a customized gift basket or order one of our several pre-made Gift Baskets.

Mention “cartoon” when checking out at the store and receive 10% off your holiday order.

Or to take advantage of this discount online. Simply enter 'cartoon' into the Promotional or Gift Certificate Code during Step 2 of check out.

Have a Sweet Holiday!

David