February 11, 2025 • 25 mins
Just in time for Valentines' Day! 😍 The Real Life Willy Wonka of the Midwest, Dan Abel Jr joins Nancy Ridlen on the latest episode.
Dan shares how he scaled the family business without sacrificing quality. What is so fascinating about the company history is that the Bissinger's roots go back to 1668 in Paris, France, and revolve around King Louis the XIV & Napolean Bonaparte! For over 200 years, the company had the distinction of being Confectioner to the Empire. Once a brand reserved for Royalty in France is alive and well and still being enjoyed in the USA.
Who LOVES getting chocolate for Valentines? We do! 🙋
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to Confessions Beyond the Food.
I'm your host, Nancy Redland.
Let's dig in and get inspired.
Hi, welcome back to ConfessionsBeyond the Food.
My name is Nancy and I'm withW3.
Today we have Dan Abel joiningus.
(00:20):
Welcome.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Thanks so much for having me.
Speaker 1 (00:23):
We're so glad to have you.
So Dan is the chief chocolateofficer of two beloved St
Louis-based companies Chocolate,chocolate, chocolate how can
you go wrong with that?
And Bissinger's HandcraftedChocolatier.
So you're known as the WillyWonka of the Midwest, right,
(00:44):
yeah, so you guys have a reallyrich history.
Do you mind just giving us aquick snapshot of that history?
It's really cool.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Absolutely so.
Two brands have a really greathistory on both sides.
Starting with ChocolateChocolate Chocolate Company.
My parents started it in 1981.
My dad went to college out ofstate and kind of started
working for a candy company in awarehouse picking and packing
job where he picked and packedorders similar to what like an
Amazon picking and packing orderwould be today, but it was just
(01:13):
all candy related products andreally kind of fell in love with
the business and so went fromworking in the warehouse to
working in the candy kitchen, toworking in the production floor
, to working in the retailstores and really learned the
whole business and stayed upthere for a few years and then
told them that he wanted to goback to St Louis.
He was born and raised in StLouis and he was dating my mom
(01:34):
at the time long distance and soshe was in St Louis.
So they were you know this wasthe 70s and so late 70s and with
there's no social media, it wasin Ohio to St Louis, such a
longer distance than it is today.
So they were encouraging to himto start out and said we'll
help you any way we can.
In 1981, he opened up his firststore and it was him and my mom.
(01:59):
He opened up in February, theygot married in May of that year
and then they were the twoemployees and it started with
one little candy kitchen, aretail store and two employees
and then really in 1998 was kindof the second retail store that
opened and then my brother'ssister and I all got involved in
the business at different timesand we still are today.
(02:19):
And so we really wanted to, aswe got up school, get in there
and build a business.
And my parents were reallyhonest with us.
They said they're very excitedabout the family business but
also there's just not money inthe business to just pay you
your salary that you wantwithout growth.
So we were very motivated to gobuild a business.
(02:42):
So he said we're going to pay,go build the business.
So you know, he was said youknow we're going to pay you the
hourly rate and if you want togo make more money than that, go
get the business for it.
And that was all I needed.
So you know, we, we, we worked alot of different channels and
and the one that really kind ofstuck after, after kind of
trying everything with wholesale, we started with some local
(03:04):
tourist accounts and then wentinto small regional retailers
and then started some localtrade shows, to regional trade
shows, to national trade shows,and traveled all over the
country and knocked on doors andgot used to hearing the word no
, got used to hearing the wordmaybe, and then one in 10 or one
in 100 was the yeses.
(03:24):
And then and then learning thatthe first sale doesn't make a
customer, it's the second saleand you know it was the the very
much school of hard knocks with, with no budget and no, you
know, we used to go to thesetrade shows and there's these
big fancy trade shows with teamsbuilding them and we had a
table.
So it was was very much learnand make it work.
(03:47):
And then in the same town therewas Bissinger's.
And so Bissinger's since I'vebeen in the candy business my
whole life with my family, youknew your competitors and you
knew the business and, just likeanything, if you're a baker you
know the other bakers, ifyou're a candy maker, you know
the other candy makers andeveryone was kind of the same in
a way.
(04:07):
But Bissinger's was up at thisdifferent level and there was a
steer behind Bissinger's and thestores were fancier and the
product was more handmade and weall sold products in a
one-pound box and Bissinger'ssold it differently.
Everything about Bissinger'swas so different and, you know,
at like 16, 17 years old, Ididn't really get it, I just
(04:30):
knew it was fancy.
But then, as we started to kindof dig into it and learn your
competition and just, we wouldsee each other at the same trade
shows and you know, you got toknow the company.
We really started to learn thehistory and learn what they do.
So in 2019, when they went forsale, you know I had sat down
(04:50):
with my family and I said youknow, we are looking for we're
kind of at that next stage wherewe're looking for growth.
This is a great opportunity.
We are a company that likes tohand make products using premium
ingredients and you know we doit slower than most.
You go to big factories and yousee a lot of automation and
things rolling fast.
That's not us and Bissinger'swas like the only other candy
(05:13):
company around that had thatsame DNA.
The big difference is thatBissinger's history started in
1668, paris, france so muchdifferent than 1981.
And we don't know the truestart, but we believe that it
probably started 10 or 20 yearsbefore that because in 1668,
(05:35):
they were actually awarded theConfesseur Imperial, which is
the confectioner to the empire,and it came directly from King
Louis XIV, and so from there on,bisinger's confections were
mostly just enjoyed at thepalace of versailles for quite a
long time.
There was.
It goes from king louis xiv allthe way to napoleon, or
napoleon it was 1800.
(05:56):
So somehow in this 200 yearreign, bisinger's reign supreme
as the confectioner to theempire, and a lot of customers
came from guests of the palaceand unfortunately we don't have
tweets and Facebook posts fromthe 1700s, like we don't know if
they also were sent to thepublic or if they just kind of
(06:16):
became, you know, the palace'sconfectioners, but it truly was,
you know, once a brand reservefor royalty.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
That is fascinating.
I mean, there's so much to like, I have so many questions, okay
.
So my first question is okay,what is it like around the
Thanksgiving table?
I mean, in the family dynamicsyour sister's involved?
Are your parents still involved?
Speaker 2 (06:42):
Parents are still involved, my brother's involved.
We always talk shop and ourchildren and our spouses can't
stand it.
But there is a giant 3-pound,10-inch or 12-inch turkey in the
middle of the table that allthe kids get to break up at the
end of the Thanksgiving dinner.
So it's a lot of fun.
There's always chocolateinvolved.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
I mean you had me at chocolate, so, and I mean this
is such a fun time y'all to talkabout chocolate because it's
Valentine's Day coming up Isthis your busiest time of year?
Speaker 2 (07:16):
Christmas is the busiest.
Christmas is about 40% of theentire portfolio for the year.
Valentine's is the mostcompressed holiday, you know.
So that really the 10th, 11th,12th, 13th and 14th those five
days is the most demand in ourretail stores and some of our
stores hit 1,000 customers a dayper store and it's mostly
(07:39):
fresh-chip chocolate-coveredstrawberries in those last few
days which we're making thatmorning.
So it's a lot of logistics thatare involved.
But Christmas is a little bitmore spread out through the
month of December.
So you know, right now the calmbefore the storm is pretty.
You know it's like the storesare beautifully decorated with
Valentines and there's cardboxes everywhere and truffles
(08:01):
and assortments.
But we're not much busier thana standard Tuesday.
But in 10 days from now it'sgoing to be insane and that's
what's so and it's because guysare last minute, like I still
haven't bought my lifestyle, Ijust take it.
So it's very much a compressedholiday.
Speaker 1 (08:19):
That's interesting.
So you guys are so nice.
Y'all sent me a box ofchocolate, so I am so excited.
My kids wanted me to open itand eat it immediately and I was
like, no, I'm saving it fortoday.
So is this branding?
Is that the original brandingfrom Bissinger's?
Speaker 2 (08:42):
Bissinger's.
We have the original logo.
It's a little bit more scripted.
We added the soap Kind of aninteresting history.
What happened was thatBissinger's, in 1845, moved to
the United States.
That's right around the timethe French Empire fell.
They moved to the United States.
It was their candy maker, theBissinger's family, and they
brought the recipe book and sothey kind of had to start over.
(09:02):
But we have newspaper clippingsand artifacts from the 1800s,
right around the time theyopened, talking about that.
They were the famousbissinger's family that made
candy, you know, for the frenchempire.
So it's, it's unbelievable howmuch you know how, how viral
they went before you could goviral about.
(09:23):
They landed in cincinnati andyou have, like I don't even know
, do they have tv back in 18?
Like they, nothing, it's justnewspaper, right, newspaper and
radio, and we have newspaperclippings talking about the
famous passengers from france.
So they started in cincinnatiand from from that point on they
came to St Louis in 1927.
So back in the 1800s it wascalled Bissinger's Fine French
(09:47):
Confections and then in 1927,there were two brothers.
The one brother, carl Bissinger, split from the company to move
to St Louis to open up his ownBissinger's, and so he had to
change the name, so that wascalled Carl Bissinger's.
And so he had to change thename, so that was called Carl
Bissinger's French Confections.
And then what happened was, Ithink in the 90s Bissinger's of
(10:10):
St Louis then bought outBissinger's of Cincinnati, so
there's just now one Bissingerwhich is us.
So then I would say 2000,.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
In the 2000s we kind of cleaned it all up just to
disinterest handcraftedchocolate here I mean the
packaging alone, I mean just thequality, and I mean when you
open it up and the paper.
I mean this is.
These are all things that areso impressive to me.
Speaker 2 (10:36):
So I guess, as a, I've been tearing that seal off
when you open it to me, likewhen I get a box of this and I'm
the one.
I just think that's so.
Yes, Like that quality sealer.
Speaker 1 (10:50):
Yes, I mean y'all want to see if you're watching.
I mean the chocolates, I meanlook how cute Actually one fell
out and that's my fault.
Speaker 2 (11:00):
Every single one of those little decorations are
placed in my hand.
Speaker 1 (11:03):
Are you serious?
Speaker 2 (11:07):
When people come on a factory tour, they're just,
they're blown away because it'sthere's 100 people in the candy
kitchen.
All they're doing is anddecorating the pieces and
placing them on or and drizzling, and it's just people's like
headaches because they're.
You know, they're used toseeing everything else in the
world go automated or go throughmachines and Bissinger's
(11:29):
recipes the last Bissinger'srecipe book we have is from 1899
.
And even though, like right now, we're in a new product
development phase, but eventhough we're about to launch
something that's brand newthough we're about to launch
something that's brand new itactually is based off of a
recipe that came out of the 1899recipe book.
It's just changing the flavorsand changing the ingredients.
And then the chocolate itselfis still made in Europe and
(11:53):
still has the same bean androast level that actually Carl
Bissinger himself developed.
So we still, even though it's2025, we're still operating like
an 1800s company or 1700scompany.
Speaker 1 (12:06):
So yeah, that was my next question was just that as
you scale larger, you know, andlarger because you guys are
selling everywhere, I mean notjust, I mean it's not just brick
and mortar.
You mentioned, you know, theretailers that you work with
outside the Midwest and so Iguess, as you scale larger, how
(12:29):
are you balancing that andtradition and the quality
craftsmanship?
Speaker 2 (12:35):
That's a great question.
So in 2012, when we opened upthe facility that we're in today
, we had basically if you thinkof the I love lucy style
production line where machinesare being chocolate we had one
small line and then we addedanother line a year later.
So it's usually a team of threeto four people per production
line.
Now, what you can do if you goto like you know, you ever got
(12:57):
to go see a snickers factory themachines are like 10 feet wide
and they're moving that at like10 feet a minute.
So that's the belt speed isgoing, you know, or 20 feet,
it's just some crazy number.
So, and you know, and what wedo is we have a maximum width
about just a little bit over afoot.
We have 12 inch wide to 16 inchwide machines and they're only
(13:18):
like 30 or 40 feet long.
So you know 2012, know 2012, wehad one line and then, at the
end of 2012, we put the secondline in.
Today we have seven productionlines running and they have each
one has a team of three to four.
Line seven just got installedlast November, and then we are
building a multimillion dollarfactory expansion.
So we're actually underconstruction right now and we're
(13:40):
doubling the size of ourproduction facility as we speak,
which will be finished aboutlate June or July, and so our
whole philosophy is, instead ofputting a much bigger line, is
just keep adding smallproduction lines.
And so it's all of these teams.
So it's right now.
There's today, in theproduction floor, there's seven
teams for people working ondifferent products, and then
(14:02):
there's the packing department,and then there's the candy
kitchen.
So we just keep adding layersof teams, so we keep that
consistency of the handmadeconfections, just like we were
doing it decades ago.
Speaker 1 (14:14):
I love that Just keeping the infrastructure,
keeping the people, the detailsas we go into it.
You know such a modern,advanced technology phase.
You know, with AI and all thethings around, technology and
modernization still need people.
So, and for that, qualityassurance.
(14:34):
So one thing that I really loveabout learning about your
company is all the innovation.
So I saw well, of course, I sawchocolate first and then you
know I'm tunnel vision but I didsee another word that always
catches my attention cocktails.
(14:55):
So tell me about the innovationof your chocolate and cocktails
.
Speaker 2 (14:59):
Well, this is going to be a big boozy year for us,
so there's a lot going on withcocktails.
We started with a collectioncalled Cocktails of Bissingers
and this was like a passionproject of mine, where I love
cocktails, like you know all thespirits out there, I love
cocktails the best over wine,over beer, over just straight
spirits, and I'm always, youknow, in my own personal bar, in
my house, I have like ninedifferent styles of bitters and
(15:22):
I have different vermouths anddifferent layers, and so I'm
always experimenting myself andI said how do we bring that into
chocolate?
Kind of.
At the same time, we gotconnected with some really great
brands in Kentucky and so we'vebeen making a lot of spirit
confections for them, but forjust for their gift shops.
So we work with Blanton's andwe work with Castle and Key
right now and we've beenmanufacturing products for them
(15:45):
for their own distilleries inKentucky.
And then we decided once wedecided to make the first
cocktails at Visagers Collection.
It was kind of like my test andit went wildly successful and
it was kind of like why did wewait so long?
Who would have thought thatchocolate and alcohol wouldn't
have been a great seller, andespecially with the fun cocktail
flavors that we did so.
(16:06):
So then it's matured into wecastle and key distillery, which
is literally a beautiful castle.
It's um, it's you know, it's anold distillery that was
reopened a few years ago.
It has come into.
They've created a gin and avodka now.
So they started with rye andbourbon, so we were doing
bourbon balls and bourboncaramels for the rye and bourbon
(16:28):
spirits.
But we decided together thisyear to launch a gin and tonic
truffle bar with the CastellanKey gin and then the Bissinger's
chocolate and also they wouldsell it and then we would sell
it, so it would be a co-brandedcollaboration product.
And it's awesome.
They would sell it and then wewould sell, so it'd be a
co-branded collaboration product.
And it's been wildly successful.
So then in like a short 60 dayswe have sold what I thought was
(16:50):
a two years forecast.
So now they have given uspermission to create a whole
product line with their vodkaand with their bourbon that we
can bring out into the market aswell.
So we're doing more innovationon the spirit side than I've
ever seen before, which is likea you know, it's half passion
project to me and then halfworking with great partners.
Speaker 1 (17:12):
That's so fun.
I mean just being in foodservice and working with
mixology and you know chefs andjust seeing how their worlds are
colliding.
It's really fun to see howchocolate is, you know, and
cocktails are colliding.
That's super fun.
So I guess I have a question interms of you.
You have something that youhave an idea, like you did, and
(17:36):
then it just goes viral, viral.
What do you do as far as like,because you thought it was a
two-year plan and it ended upbooming?
How do you handle that withjust keeping up?
Do you just say no to orders,or how do you because one thing
would yeah, sorry, yeah that's.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
I have a problem saying no, and it's a curse and
a blessing.
Um, there's, you know, wealways, sometimes like the truck
is backing up and we'refinishing the order, you know,
and we like bring the truckdriver like a couple chocolate
bars to sit there for 20 minutes.
Uh, you know, we, we really youknow we have expanded the plant
(18:16):
six times since we, since we.
So we moved into this facilityin 2012 and then started there.
Then we added it's been since2012 to 2025, tens of millions
of dollars in investment frommore we have a second facility
down the street to moreequipment, and so now, with the
addition so every year there's abig thing that happens to
(18:39):
handle the growth.
You know, in 2012, we put up theI Love Lucy style chocolate
production line was about$150,000.
And now they're about $350,000for the same exact machine.
So costs have gone up, so theexpansion is becoming a lot more
expensive.
However, we believe that youknow that's the old adage if you
build it, they will come.
So, had we stayed at the samesize as we are today in 2012, we
(19:02):
would have been saying no to60% of our 70% of our customers.
But I just believe that you knowwe have this model to keep
growing.
It's expensive, but you know,one day we'll probably be at a
point where we're like, okay, Ithink the infrastructure is
caught up where we need to be.
But my brother, sister and I,we feel young.
We're not as young as we usedto be, but we feel young and we
(19:24):
get a lot of energy.
And so there's a lot of timeswhere we're going in and working
weekends and we're workingSaturdays or early nights Can
you talk today Late nights andearly mornings to get orders
done and we have to get creativeand kind of juggle the schedule
.
But you know, we just we lovewhat we're doing so much I hate,
I hate saying no, so we justtry to make it work.
Speaker 1 (19:46):
I get that it is so hard to say no.
And one thing you said earlierreally resonated with me it's
not the first order, you know,and you know it's the second
order and making sure you canfulfill that second order and
really good advice I remember mystepdad told me, with buying a
(20:08):
house, keep on updating, becauseyou don't ever want to get to a
point where you want to selland then your house is 15 years
old and you've done nothing toit and it catches up with you
and if you want growth, if youwant big sales, you have to
invest.
(20:28):
And for me and my company,that's what we've done and it's
been great, so we can handlewhat comes, you know, down the
road.
So, as one thing you alsomentioned earlier was, they
didn't have social media.
So I really I was checking outsome of your reels and TikToks.
So how are you guys embracingsocial media with your company?
Speaker 2 (20:51):
That's such a great question and that the concept
changes every once in a while.
Sometimes what we like to do,you know, I would say the before
was position products on socialmedia to the season.
So focus on, like, our heartboxes, and we really have gone
to a couple different channels.
Now is when we're working withmore influencers to really try
(21:11):
to, you know, tell the story ofmore who we are and get the
brand out there, because notonly just to it.
You know, like bissinger's andchocolate chocolate, chocolate
does not need to be for theolder generation, like the, what
we're seeing is that like, forexample, the decorated mints
that you saw that you have thatin that box.
I'll anecdotally say this 10years ago the hand decorated
(21:36):
mints were what your grandmabought and it was for like the
60 and up crowd.
That's what they were made for.
They are coming.
Hand decorated mints and thehand decorated cookies are like
a millennial thing now, likeit's the.
You know it skipped ageneration like skip the baby
boomers, but now which weactually joking.
We had a lot of baby boomersthat buy like, but it went from
(21:57):
grandmas and I think becausethey would buy for their
grandkids and now theirgrandkids are, you know, buying
visitors now and that's whatthey're coming in.
They're buying handated mintsand cookies and it was like so
which were we engaged in tellingthat story?
The other thing we really liketo use for social media and
we're trying to get better at itis to show the craft of the
product, so kind of thosefocused.
(22:19):
You know, we right now one ofthe products for for valentine's
day is our salted caramelhearts, and so it's.
You know, you take thatbissinger's caramel that goes
back to, you know, hundreds ofyears.
That was literally the samecaramel recipe at the Palace of
Versailles.
We formed them into the heart,into the shape of a heart
instead of a square, and then,you know, in a row, milk
chocolate, but the pink saltthat goes on top is hand
(22:42):
sprinkled, every single one in arow that goes down.
So just, we had a you know shotthe other day just focusing on
that, because I think that thepeople can appreciate consuming
the product so much more whenthey see that, and I think that
the factory tours that we give,when we give them for free,
because to us it's so importantfor the consumer to see that,
(23:05):
and so we're trying to use kindof like that angle for social
media.
So a lot of closeups of of ofhow we're decorating and
crafting and acting and makingthe product.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
Yeah, I, I'm fascinated.
I mean I love I get theopportunity to go to different
factories and see how things aremade and it is just fascinating
.
And so, and it I mean TikTokand all the social platforms are
just changing everything.
I love that you're embracinginfluencers so you just really
(23:36):
have no pun intended, like therecipe for success that I think
you know can help myself.
As you know, I've been anentrepreneur for 10 years and
you know, for people out therethat have, you know, new
entrepreneurs and people thatare like, hey, I've got to catch
up, you know, I've got toengage, you know, and with the
(23:56):
change and get involved.
So I have really enjoyedgetting to know you a little bit
better and your business.
And again, I love chocolate andand I think everybody should go
out and buy Bissinger'schocolate.
We will link this and don'twait too late.
You know, order your chocolatenow for your sweetie, but while
(24:19):
I eat this chocolate, I'm justcurious.
I can't let you go withouttelling us a confession.
Speaker 2 (24:26):
I have a confession and you know so the number one
product that we make globally,both our brands, is salt and
caramels, and it is my leastfavorite product.
So I absolutely love ourcaramels, but I would just
prefer to have and we do putsalt in the caramel too, but, um
, I always if I get a sea saltcaramel, I brush the salt off
(24:49):
and um, just, and I prefer theclassic vanilla caramel.
But sea salt caramel's numberone thing we make and it's my
least favorite thing, but I love, like salty foods, like I love
salt on my french fries, so it'sa, it's a, it's the weirdest
thing ever you just don't mix,and that's okay.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
I mean, that's what probably encourages you to
innovate and you, you know, makedifferent things so well.
Thank you so much for joiningme.
I've really, really enjoyed ourdiscussion.
Again, we will put the link towhere everyone can order these
chocolates and even if it's pastValentine's that you're
(25:25):
listening to it, that's okay.
Surprise a friend one day withsome chocolates from Bissinger.
So, thank you so much and we'llcatch you next time.
Thank you so much for having me.
For more inspiration, followour social media at W3Cells.
Please like, comment andsubscribe.
You know all the things wewould love to connect with you.
Welcome to Confessions Beyond the Food.
I'm your host, Nancy Redland.
Let's dig in and get inspired.
Hi, welcome back to ConfessionsBeyond the Food.
My name is Nancy and I'm withW3.
Today we have Dan Abel joiningus.
(00:20):
Welcome.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Thanks so much for having me.
Speaker 1 (00:23):
We're so glad to have you.
So Dan is the chief chocolateofficer of two beloved St
Louis-based companies Chocolate,chocolate, chocolate how can
you go wrong with that?
And Bissinger's HandcraftedChocolatier.
So you're known as the WillyWonka of the Midwest, right,
(00:44):
yeah, so you guys have a reallyrich history.
Do you mind just giving us aquick snapshot of that history?
It's really cool.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Absolutely so.
Two brands have a really greathistory on both sides.
Starting with ChocolateChocolate Chocolate Company.
My parents started it in 1981.
My dad went to college out ofstate and kind of started
working for a candy company in awarehouse picking and packing
job where he picked and packedorders similar to what like an
Amazon picking and packing orderwould be today, but it was just
(01:13):
all candy related products andreally kind of fell in love with
the business and so went fromworking in the warehouse to
working in the candy kitchen, toworking in the production floor
, to working in the retailstores and really learned the
whole business and stayed upthere for a few years and then
told them that he wanted to goback to St Louis.
He was born and raised in StLouis and he was dating my mom
(01:34):
at the time long distance and soshe was in St Louis.
So they were you know this wasthe 70s and so late 70s and with
there's no social media, it wasin Ohio to St Louis, such a
longer distance than it is today.
So they were encouraging to himto start out and said we'll
help you any way we can.
In 1981, he opened up his firststore and it was him and my mom.
(01:59):
He opened up in February, theygot married in May of that year
and then they were the twoemployees and it started with
one little candy kitchen, aretail store and two employees
and then really in 1998 was kindof the second retail store that
opened and then my brother'ssister and I all got involved in
the business at different timesand we still are today.
(02:19):
And so we really wanted to, aswe got up school, get in there
and build a business.
And my parents were reallyhonest with us.
They said they're very excitedabout the family business but
also there's just not money inthe business to just pay you
your salary that you wantwithout growth.
So we were very motivated to gobuild a business.
(02:42):
So he said we're going to pay,go build the business.
So you know, he was said youknow we're going to pay you the
hourly rate and if you want togo make more money than that, go
get the business for it.
And that was all I needed.
So you know, we, we, we worked alot of different channels and
and the one that really kind ofstuck after, after kind of
trying everything with wholesale, we started with some local
(03:04):
tourist accounts and then wentinto small regional retailers
and then started some localtrade shows, to regional trade
shows, to national trade shows,and traveled all over the
country and knocked on doors andgot used to hearing the word no
, got used to hearing the wordmaybe, and then one in 10 or one
in 100 was the yeses.
(03:24):
And then and then learning thatthe first sale doesn't make a
customer, it's the second saleand you know it was the the very
much school of hard knocks with, with no budget and no, you
know, we used to go to thesetrade shows and there's these
big fancy trade shows with teamsbuilding them and we had a
table.
So it was was very much learnand make it work.
(03:47):
And then in the same town therewas Bissinger's.
And so Bissinger's since I'vebeen in the candy business my
whole life with my family, youknew your competitors and you
knew the business and, just likeanything, if you're a baker you
know the other bakers, ifyou're a candy maker, you know
the other candy makers andeveryone was kind of the same in
a way.
(04:07):
But Bissinger's was up at thisdifferent level and there was a
steer behind Bissinger's and thestores were fancier and the
product was more handmade and weall sold products in a
one-pound box and Bissinger'ssold it differently.
Everything about Bissinger'swas so different and, you know,
at like 16, 17 years old, Ididn't really get it, I just
(04:30):
knew it was fancy.
But then, as we started to kindof dig into it and learn your
competition and just, we wouldsee each other at the same trade
shows and you know, you got toknow the company.
We really started to learn thehistory and learn what they do.
So in 2019, when they went forsale, you know I had sat down
(04:50):
with my family and I said youknow, we are looking for we're
kind of at that next stage wherewe're looking for growth.
This is a great opportunity.
We are a company that likes tohand make products using premium
ingredients and you know we doit slower than most.
You go to big factories and yousee a lot of automation and
things rolling fast.
That's not us and Bissinger'swas like the only other candy
(05:13):
company around that had thatsame DNA.
The big difference is thatBissinger's history started in
1668, paris, france so muchdifferent than 1981.
And we don't know the truestart, but we believe that it
probably started 10 or 20 yearsbefore that because in 1668,
(05:35):
they were actually awarded theConfesseur Imperial, which is
the confectioner to the empire,and it came directly from King
Louis XIV, and so from there on,bisinger's confections were
mostly just enjoyed at thepalace of versailles for quite a
long time.
There was.
It goes from king louis xiv allthe way to napoleon, or
napoleon it was 1800.
(05:56):
So somehow in this 200 yearreign, bisinger's reign supreme
as the confectioner to theempire, and a lot of customers
came from guests of the palaceand unfortunately we don't have
tweets and Facebook posts fromthe 1700s, like we don't know if
they also were sent to thepublic or if they just kind of
(06:16):
became, you know, the palace'sconfectioners, but it truly was,
you know, once a brand reservefor royalty.
Speaker 1 (06:24):
That is fascinating.
I mean, there's so much to like, I have so many questions, okay
.
So my first question is okay,what is it like around the
Thanksgiving table?
I mean, in the family dynamicsyour sister's involved?
Are your parents still involved?
Speaker 2 (06:42):
Parents are still involved, my brother's involved.
We always talk shop and ourchildren and our spouses can't
stand it.
But there is a giant 3-pound,10-inch or 12-inch turkey in the
middle of the table that allthe kids get to break up at the
end of the Thanksgiving dinner.
So it's a lot of fun.
There's always chocolateinvolved.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
I mean you had me at chocolate, so, and I mean this
is such a fun time y'all to talkabout chocolate because it's
Valentine's Day coming up Isthis your busiest time of year?
Speaker 2 (07:16):
Christmas is the busiest.
Christmas is about 40% of theentire portfolio for the year.
Valentine's is the mostcompressed holiday, you know.
So that really the 10th, 11th,12th, 13th and 14th those five
days is the most demand in ourretail stores and some of our
stores hit 1,000 customers a dayper store and it's mostly
(07:39):
fresh-chip chocolate-coveredstrawberries in those last few
days which we're making thatmorning.
So it's a lot of logistics thatare involved.
But Christmas is a little bitmore spread out through the
month of December.
So you know, right now the calmbefore the storm is pretty.
You know it's like the storesare beautifully decorated with
Valentines and there's cardboxes everywhere and truffles
(08:01):
and assortments.
But we're not much busier thana standard Tuesday.
But in 10 days from now it'sgoing to be insane and that's
what's so and it's because guysare last minute, like I still
haven't bought my lifestyle, Ijust take it.
So it's very much a compressedholiday.
Speaker 1 (08:19):
That's interesting.
So you guys are so nice.
Y'all sent me a box ofchocolate, so I am so excited.
My kids wanted me to open itand eat it immediately and I was
like, no, I'm saving it fortoday.
So is this branding?
Is that the original brandingfrom Bissinger's?
Speaker 2 (08:42):
Bissinger's.
We have the original logo.
It's a little bit more scripted.
We added the soap Kind of aninteresting history.
What happened was thatBissinger's, in 1845, moved to
the United States.
That's right around the timethe French Empire fell.
They moved to the United States.
It was their candy maker, theBissinger's family, and they
brought the recipe book and sothey kind of had to start over.
(09:02):
But we have newspaper clippingsand artifacts from the 1800s,
right around the time theyopened, talking about that.
They were the famousbissinger's family that made
candy, you know, for the frenchempire.
So it's, it's unbelievable howmuch you know how, how viral
they went before you could goviral about.
(09:23):
They landed in cincinnati andyou have, like I don't even know
, do they have tv back in 18?
Like they, nothing, it's justnewspaper, right, newspaper and
radio, and we have newspaperclippings talking about the
famous passengers from france.
So they started in cincinnatiand from from that point on they
came to St Louis in 1927.
So back in the 1800s it wascalled Bissinger's Fine French
(09:47):
Confections and then in 1927,there were two brothers.
The one brother, carl Bissinger, split from the company to move
to St Louis to open up his ownBissinger's, and so he had to
change the name, so that wascalled Carl Bissinger's.
And so he had to change thename, so that was called Carl
Bissinger's French Confections.
And then what happened was, Ithink in the 90s Bissinger's of
(10:10):
St Louis then bought outBissinger's of Cincinnati, so
there's just now one Bissingerwhich is us.
So then I would say 2000,.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
In the 2000s we kind of cleaned it all up just to
disinterest handcraftedchocolate here I mean the
packaging alone, I mean just thequality, and I mean when you
open it up and the paper.
I mean this is.
These are all things that areso impressive to me.
Speaker 2 (10:36):
So I guess, as a, I've been tearing that seal off
when you open it to me, likewhen I get a box of this and I'm
the one.
I just think that's so.
Yes, Like that quality sealer.
Speaker 1 (10:50):
Yes, I mean y'all want to see if you're watching.
I mean the chocolates, I meanlook how cute Actually one fell
out and that's my fault.
Speaker 2 (11:00):
Every single one of those little decorations are
placed in my hand.
Speaker 1 (11:03):
Are you serious?
Speaker 2 (11:07):
When people come on a factory tour, they're just,
they're blown away because it'sthere's 100 people in the candy
kitchen.
All they're doing is anddecorating the pieces and
placing them on or and drizzling, and it's just people's like
headaches because they're.
You know, they're used toseeing everything else in the
world go automated or go throughmachines and Bissinger's
(11:29):
recipes the last Bissinger'srecipe book we have is from 1899
.
And even though, like right now, we're in a new product
development phase, but eventhough we're about to launch
something that's brand newthough we're about to launch
something that's brand new itactually is based off of a
recipe that came out of the 1899recipe book.
It's just changing the flavorsand changing the ingredients.
And then the chocolate itselfis still made in Europe and
(11:53):
still has the same bean androast level that actually Carl
Bissinger himself developed.
So we still, even though it's2025, we're still operating like
an 1800s company or 1700scompany.
Speaker 1 (12:06):
So yeah, that was my next question was just that as
you scale larger, you know, andlarger because you guys are
selling everywhere, I mean notjust, I mean it's not just brick
and mortar.
You mentioned, you know, theretailers that you work with
outside the Midwest and so Iguess, as you scale larger, how
(12:29):
are you balancing that andtradition and the quality
craftsmanship?
Speaker 2 (12:35):
That's a great question.
So in 2012, when we opened upthe facility that we're in today
, we had basically if you thinkof the I love lucy style
production line where machinesare being chocolate we had one
small line and then we addedanother line a year later.
So it's usually a team of threeto four people per production
line.
Now, what you can do if you goto like you know, you ever got
(12:57):
to go see a snickers factory themachines are like 10 feet wide
and they're moving that at like10 feet a minute.
So that's the belt speed isgoing, you know, or 20 feet,
it's just some crazy number.
So, and you know, and what wedo is we have a maximum width
about just a little bit over afoot.
We have 12 inch wide to 16 inchwide machines and they're only
(13:18):
like 30 or 40 feet long.
So you know 2012, know 2012, wehad one line and then, at the
end of 2012, we put the secondline in.
Today we have seven productionlines running and they have each
one has a team of three to four.
Line seven just got installedlast November, and then we are
building a multimillion dollarfactory expansion.
So we're actually underconstruction right now and we're
(13:40):
doubling the size of ourproduction facility as we speak,
which will be finished aboutlate June or July, and so our
whole philosophy is, instead ofputting a much bigger line, is
just keep adding smallproduction lines.
And so it's all of these teams.
So it's right now.
There's today, in theproduction floor, there's seven
teams for people working ondifferent products, and then
(14:02):
there's the packing department,and then there's the candy
kitchen.
So we just keep adding layersof teams, so we keep that
consistency of the handmadeconfections, just like we were
doing it decades ago.
Speaker 1 (14:14):
I love that Just keeping the infrastructure,
keeping the people, the detailsas we go into it.
You know such a modern,advanced technology phase.
You know, with AI and all thethings around, technology and
modernization still need people.
So, and for that, qualityassurance.
(14:34):
So one thing that I really loveabout learning about your
company is all the innovation.
So I saw well, of course, I sawchocolate first and then you
know I'm tunnel vision but I didsee another word that always
catches my attention cocktails.
(14:55):
So tell me about the innovationof your chocolate and cocktails
.
Speaker 2 (14:59):
Well, this is going to be a big boozy year for us,
so there's a lot going on withcocktails.
We started with a collectioncalled Cocktails of Bissingers
and this was like a passionproject of mine, where I love
cocktails, like you know all thespirits out there, I love
cocktails the best over wine,over beer, over just straight
spirits, and I'm always, youknow, in my own personal bar, in
my house, I have like ninedifferent styles of bitters and
(15:22):
I have different vermouths anddifferent layers, and so I'm
always experimenting myself andI said how do we bring that into
chocolate?
Kind of.
At the same time, we gotconnected with some really great
brands in Kentucky and so we'vebeen making a lot of spirit
confections for them, but forjust for their gift shops.
So we work with Blanton's andwe work with Castle and Key
right now and we've beenmanufacturing products for them
(15:45):
for their own distilleries inKentucky.
And then we decided once wedecided to make the first
cocktails at Visagers Collection.
It was kind of like my test andit went wildly successful and
it was kind of like why did wewait so long?
Who would have thought thatchocolate and alcohol wouldn't
have been a great seller, andespecially with the fun cocktail
flavors that we did so.
(16:06):
So then it's matured into wecastle and key distillery, which
is literally a beautiful castle.
It's um, it's you know, it's anold distillery that was
reopened a few years ago.
It has come into.
They've created a gin and avodka now.
So they started with rye andbourbon, so we were doing
bourbon balls and bourboncaramels for the rye and bourbon
(16:28):
spirits.
But we decided together thisyear to launch a gin and tonic
truffle bar with the CastellanKey gin and then the Bissinger's
chocolate and also they wouldsell it and then we would sell
it, so it would be a co-brandedcollaboration product.
And it's awesome.
They would sell it and then wewould sell, so it'd be a
co-branded collaboration product.
And it's been wildly successful.
So then in like a short 60 dayswe have sold what I thought was
(16:50):
a two years forecast.
So now they have given uspermission to create a whole
product line with their vodkaand with their bourbon that we
can bring out into the market aswell.
So we're doing more innovationon the spirit side than I've
ever seen before, which is likea you know, it's half passion
project to me and then halfworking with great partners.
Speaker 1 (17:12):
That's so fun.
I mean just being in foodservice and working with
mixology and you know chefs andjust seeing how their worlds are
colliding.
It's really fun to see howchocolate is, you know, and
cocktails are colliding.
That's super fun.
So I guess I have a question interms of you.
You have something that youhave an idea, like you did, and
(17:36):
then it just goes viral, viral.
What do you do as far as like,because you thought it was a
two-year plan and it ended upbooming?
How do you handle that withjust keeping up?
Do you just say no to orders,or how do you because one thing
would yeah, sorry, yeah that's.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
I have a problem saying no, and it's a curse and
a blessing.
Um, there's, you know, wealways, sometimes like the truck
is backing up and we'refinishing the order, you know,
and we like bring the truckdriver like a couple chocolate
bars to sit there for 20 minutes.
Uh, you know, we, we really youknow we have expanded the plant
(18:16):
six times since we, since we.
So we moved into this facilityin 2012 and then started there.
Then we added it's been since2012 to 2025, tens of millions
of dollars in investment frommore we have a second facility
down the street to moreequipment, and so now, with the
addition so every year there's abig thing that happens to
(18:39):
handle the growth.
You know, in 2012, we put up theI Love Lucy style chocolate
production line was about$150,000.
And now they're about $350,000for the same exact machine.
So costs have gone up, so theexpansion is becoming a lot more
expensive.
However, we believe that youknow that's the old adage if you
build it, they will come.
So, had we stayed at the samesize as we are today in 2012, we
(19:02):
would have been saying no to60% of our 70% of our customers.
But I just believe that you knowwe have this model to keep
growing.
It's expensive, but you know,one day we'll probably be at a
point where we're like, okay, Ithink the infrastructure is
caught up where we need to be.
But my brother, sister and I,we feel young.
We're not as young as we usedto be, but we feel young and we
(19:24):
get a lot of energy.
And so there's a lot of timeswhere we're going in and working
weekends and we're workingSaturdays or early nights Can
you talk today Late nights andearly mornings to get orders
done and we have to get creativeand kind of juggle the schedule
.
But you know, we just we lovewhat we're doing so much I hate,
I hate saying no, so we justtry to make it work.
Speaker 1 (19:46):
I get that it is so hard to say no.
And one thing you said earlierreally resonated with me it's
not the first order, you know,and you know it's the second
order and making sure you canfulfill that second order and
really good advice I remember mystepdad told me, with buying a
(20:08):
house, keep on updating, becauseyou don't ever want to get to a
point where you want to selland then your house is 15 years
old and you've done nothing toit and it catches up with you
and if you want growth, if youwant big sales, you have to
invest.
(20:28):
And for me and my company,that's what we've done and it's
been great, so we can handlewhat comes, you know, down the
road.
So, as one thing you alsomentioned earlier was, they
didn't have social media.
So I really I was checking outsome of your reels and TikToks.
So how are you guys embracingsocial media with your company?
Speaker 2 (20:51):
That's such a great question and that the concept
changes every once in a while.
Sometimes what we like to do,you know, I would say the before
was position products on socialmedia to the season.
So focus on, like, our heartboxes, and we really have gone
to a couple different channels.
Now is when we're working withmore influencers to really try
(21:11):
to, you know, tell the story ofmore who we are and get the
brand out there, because notonly just to it.
You know, like bissinger's andchocolate chocolate, chocolate
does not need to be for theolder generation, like the, what
we're seeing is that like, forexample, the decorated mints
that you saw that you have thatin that box.
I'll anecdotally say this 10years ago the hand decorated
(21:36):
mints were what your grandmabought and it was for like the
60 and up crowd.
That's what they were made for.
They are coming.
Hand decorated mints and thehand decorated cookies are like
a millennial thing now, likeit's the.
You know it skipped ageneration like skip the baby
boomers, but now which weactually joking.
We had a lot of baby boomersthat buy like, but it went from
(21:57):
grandmas and I think becausethey would buy for their
grandkids and now theirgrandkids are, you know, buying
visitors now and that's whatthey're coming in.
They're buying handated mintsand cookies and it was like so
which were we engaged in tellingthat story?
The other thing we really liketo use for social media and
we're trying to get better at itis to show the craft of the
product, so kind of thosefocused.
(22:19):
You know, we right now one ofthe products for for valentine's
day is our salted caramelhearts, and so it's.
You know, you take thatbissinger's caramel that goes
back to, you know, hundreds ofyears.
That was literally the samecaramel recipe at the Palace of
Versailles.
We formed them into the heart,into the shape of a heart
instead of a square, and then,you know, in a row, milk
chocolate, but the pink saltthat goes on top is hand
(22:42):
sprinkled, every single one in arow that goes down.
So just, we had a you know shotthe other day just focusing on
that, because I think that thepeople can appreciate consuming
the product so much more whenthey see that, and I think that
the factory tours that we give,when we give them for free,
because to us it's so importantfor the consumer to see that,
(23:05):
and so we're trying to use kindof like that angle for social
media.
So a lot of closeups of of ofhow we're decorating and
crafting and acting and makingthe product.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
Yeah, I, I'm fascinated.
I mean I love I get theopportunity to go to different
factories and see how things aremade and it is just fascinating
.
And so, and it I mean TikTokand all the social platforms are
just changing everything.
I love that you're embracinginfluencers so you just really
(23:36):
have no pun intended, like therecipe for success that I think
you know can help myself.
As you know, I've been anentrepreneur for 10 years and
you know, for people out therethat have, you know, new
entrepreneurs and people thatare like, hey, I've got to catch
up, you know, I've got toengage, you know, and with the
(23:56):
change and get involved.
So I have really enjoyedgetting to know you a little bit
better and your business.
And again, I love chocolate andand I think everybody should go
out and buy Bissinger'schocolate.
We will link this and don'twait too late.
You know, order your chocolatenow for your sweetie, but while
(24:19):
I eat this chocolate, I'm justcurious.
I can't let you go withouttelling us a confession.
Speaker 2 (24:26):
I have a confession and you know so the number one
product that we make globally,both our brands, is salt and
caramels, and it is my leastfavorite product.
So I absolutely love ourcaramels, but I would just
prefer to have and we do putsalt in the caramel too, but, um
, I always if I get a sea saltcaramel, I brush the salt off
(24:49):
and um, just, and I prefer theclassic vanilla caramel.
But sea salt caramel's numberone thing we make and it's my
least favorite thing, but I love, like salty foods, like I love
salt on my french fries, so it'sa, it's a, it's the weirdest
thing ever you just don't mix,and that's okay.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
I mean, that's what probably encourages you to
innovate and you, you know, makedifferent things so well.
Thank you so much for joiningme.
I've really, really enjoyed ourdiscussion.
Again, we will put the link towhere everyone can order these
chocolates and even if it's pastValentine's that you're
(25:25):
listening to it, that's okay.
Surprise a friend one day withsome chocolates from Bissinger.
So, thank you so much and we'llcatch you next time.
Thank you so much for having me.
For more inspiration, followour social media at W3Cells.
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