A secret recipe first formulated in the 1920's, four big copper kettles, and a bright blue metal building located down a rambling country road. Humble beginnings. Candy that withstood the test of time indeed. Especially when you consider what has become a thriving, popular, and well-known family business with products distributed across the United States. Currently led by... 'The Candy Lady'.
How has Butterfield's hard candies withstood the test of time? With a nod to nostalgia and a strong emotional connection that most consumers adore.
Dena Manning, a.k.a. ‘The Candy Lady’, is the woman behind the reinvigoration of the famous peach buds candy. She was the primary driver behind the brand’s comeback after Butterfield’s Traditional Candy Co. experienced bankruptcy in 2009. Dena single-handedly brought this iconic company back to life. A woman owned and family operated business.
A company that was started back in 1924 and had built a fanbase of many across the U.S. with their hard candy “buds”. She revived secret family recipes and quickly gained the attention of a new generation of candy lovers. Butterfield’s candies have a distinctive taste of childhood memories.
The candies also possess a celebrated aroma from the moment you open the package. The candy perfume highlights pleasure and self-indulgence, as well as moments of relaxation and enjoyment that people yearn for when eating sweets. Gratification.
Butterfield’s buds have a deep-seated, emotional connection with consumers, a staple of small town life. Made in the U.S.A.. The team creates the peach bud along with many new flavors that are equally easy to fall in love with. Cherry, Grape, Lemon, Ginger & Key Lime to name a few.
Butterfield’s Buds capture the true essences of your favorite fruits. Simple quality ingredients – Fruit Nectar – Hint of Coconut – Dusting of Sugar. From the farm right into your candy jar.
From the moment you open a bag and smell the sweetness, your taste buds are tingling.
Food brands that appeal to nostalgia, a yearning for yesteryear are very popular right now. The relaunch of Butterfield’s Candy is seen as an opportunity to not just appeal to past consumers, but also recruit new fans. Highlighting the Peach buds that made the brand famous.
Buds have attracted recent attention from local consumers, to the Home Shopping Marketplace to celebrity chefs like Rachel Ray who declared them one of her favorite “Snack of the Day” in a segment on her talk show. As Butterfield’s Candy remembers… “After Rachael Ray featured Peach Buds on TV, we couldn’t keep up with production because the demand became so great.”
Part of the secret? Buds are unique. Each piece of candy is touched by hands from start to finish. From production to packaging. Each candy has an individual shape, all using vintage machinery. The flavors are mixed by hand throughout the candy which is why the flavor is so long-lasting. Butterfield’s uses time treasured techniques and recipes. Hand stirred and hand folded then cut into buds.
The candies are still made by hand in small batches cooked in well-worn copper kettles. This is part of what creates the distinctive taste. It is also what sets them apart from other hard candy competitors. The Test of Time.
The original flavors remain a mainstay at Butterfields while new additions and broader selections give the public more choices to find what’s right for them and establish a way to connect with new consumers. The newer holiday mix options, available year round, combine peppermint, spearmint, cinnamon, wintergreen, orange and lime buds to evoke those seasonal memories. Yum!
This iconic brand has the ability to elicit emotion in the form of happy memories while their current strategy is to focus on adding a modern social media and community engagement twist to connect with consumers. You can follow along with Butterfield’s Candy current news, latest flavors and company updates anytime by following them in their online social communities.
These candies have captured the imaginations of generations of consumers, commanding a level of quality and brand loyalty and recognition that ensures they continue to stand out from the crowd!!
Hard Candy that Withstood the Test of Time
Some food products, if they don’t sell, are no longer seen in the marketplace, but not Butterfields. Peach buds have been disappearing from candy jars since 1924. That’s 97 years and still going strong!