Sweets From Heaven & Fuzziwig’s Candy Factory (Boca Raton, Fort Myers, Orlando)
***** Sweets From Heaven & Fuzziwig’s Candy Factory *****
Got something here that I can’t exactly wrap my arms around…Sweets From Heaven & Fuzziwig’s Candy Factory.
To make a long story-short…
Yesterday, I killed some time in Boca Town Center–while Mrs. Jeff Eats roamed the mall looking for God knows what…For one solid hour I entertained myself- checking out people (most had no packages) and “thinking” about stuff like-how poorly the mall’s new food court “mix” and lay-out was–and what a goldmine the Apple Store was.
Anyway…right near the food court is an “upscale” candy store named Sweets From Heaven. I’m gonna assume that all of you guys have been to big regional malls and have seen and been in “some version” of an upscale candy store. For the record, Sweets From Heaven is a small national chain with a number of franchised locations in the United States. Not sure why, but in some malls the “store-concept” is called Sweets From Heaven and in others it’s called Fuzziwig’s Candy Factory. You can check the chain’s website www.sweetsfromheaven.com for locations/details. For our purposes, there is 1-Sweets From Heaven in Boca Raton, 1-Fuzziwig’s in Fort Myers, 1-Fuzziwig’s in Orlando.
Now, I may be giving you guys too much credit here, but I don’t think so… but, when you saw these “candy stores” which look like amusement parks/candy factories– loaded with bulk candy and kids’ novelty items- didn’t you say to yourselves, “Boy! I wish I was a kid, but man, this stuff costs a fortune.” Well, if you didn’t…I did—and as I walked around the store I couldn’t believe the prices that this joint was getting for the most basic of candies.
Now, if I recall my basic PS 179 math, there are 16 ounces to a pound. To be perfectly honest with you. I don’t recall the exact “brands” or exact ” $-amounts” but Sweets From Heaven was hitting up customers for something like $7.95–$14.95 lb. Like I said a few seconds ago, the brands may not be exactly the same, but I kinda think that I know what, M & M–Twizzler Licorice–Good & Plenty candies look like. Now, nothing for nothing, but on many standard candies- guys like Walmart, Target, Costco are fetching something like 23-30 cents per oz. I’m gonna let you guys do the math. By the way, this morning before writing this piece I checked my cupboard and visited a Walmart and Costco to make sure I wasn’t talking out of my hat.
Now, I know that businesses like Sweets From Heaven rely on “impulse buying.” It just seems to me, that there is impulse buying and then there is IMPULSE BUYING.
Like I said at the top of this discussion, Got something here that I can’t exactly wrap my arms around.
Jeff:
You and I are about the same age.
I grew up in Brooklyn and attended PS 139. You will recall that PS 139 was just a few blocks away from 811 Cortelyou Rd where you grew up.
My friends and I use to go to a candy store named Sams. Dont know how it got that name but I think that the first owner’s name was sam and the name Sam took.
Candy was in a glass case and most items were 1 cent. We would tell sam what we wanted and he took it out of the case and put the candies in a little brown bag. Most of the time we had 5 maybe 10 cents to spend.
Not sure what mall it was but I think it was Sawgrass and went into a candy store. Dont recall the name of the store but there was a package of long red twizzlers for $9.95. Of course i was just looking and dint buy the package. A few weeks ago in Costco i saw the identical item for $3.95. Now that should tell you and others something.
I think Sweets and their ilk are fun but they are for the gift crowd and tourists of the world. Those seeking straight up candy buy it in the walmarts, targets, costcos, sams of the world. by the way even the local publix is much higher than those just mentioned.
check the definition of “MARKETING”
Businesses like this one, Whole Foods etc. charge way more for the exact same products than other stores do. You are right that MARKETING is the reason. Somehow they convince the consumer to up pay based on the surroundings, decor, pr.
That’s the reality of the game.
If you look this chain only has a couple of handful of locations. Now take a look at Costco with hundreds of stores. MARKETING works both ways. This candy one plays the upscale card while the Costco folks play the bargain card.
So you can MARKET yourself anyway that you want.
I suspect that Sweets needs a big markup to pay the enormous mall rents. Now imagine how much more business they would do with bargain prices.
The big question is would enough goods at a lower price be able to handle the rent.
Personally I can see a Whole Foods getting away with higher prices because they are painting a healthy way of eating image. But on the candy, M & M no matter where purchased are still just M & Ms.
Do you know what suckers are? Pun intended!
Anyone who pays top dollar for candy is a sucker.
Everytime I see one of these fancy candylands I just shake my head.
This is purely an impulse buy.
Any sensible parent isn’t going to waste money in these type of shops.
Then again to this very day I can’t figure out the attraction of $5 coffee at Starbuck’s.
Sort of like the ripoff at movie theatres. Something like $10 for popcorn when you could buy a bag for $1 in the supermarket.
Those candy stores in the big malls are strictly an impulse buy. Someone needs a cut gift or a little kid is being treated, but nobody who is in his or her right mind is going to buy bulk there.
Hey Jeff, the reason why some of the locations are named Fuzziwig’s is because anyone who pays the prices that Fuzziwig’s is charging has to be a bit fuzzy on the brain.
Jeff: On a different topic, have you ever eaten at Johnny’s Soda Fountain & Luncheonette in Miami Springs? It’s located in the Miami Springs Pharmacy which has been around for over 60 years.
Food is great.
COOLGUY830:
Just had a chance to read your comments.
Yes, I have eaten at Johnny’s.
Look for a column on it in the near future.
Thanks for reading…
Publix (not Costco or Walmart)- half gallon ice cream or yogurt 2/$7 = 5 cents oz.
VS
Orange Leaf yogurt stores, where you can buy as much or as little as you want, and mix and match flavors and toppings for 8 times the price of publix !!
Why are you shocked by Sweets from Heaven?
Gary, I don’t think that Jeff Eats is shocked by Sweets From Heaven. What he is doing is getting a discussion going.
By the way yogurt at a self serve place is totally different than buying a half gal. Of ice cream at Publix. One is for home consumption while the other is for immediate gratification.
So Jeff might be right on the money when he says that buying in bulk from Sweets makes no sense. After all bulk is for home consumption as is the candy you buy inPuboix.
I do not think that the candy bought at sweet’s is for home consumption, it is bought by young kids for immediate gratification.
I don’t think that anybody is going to sweets for a 1 lb bag of M&M’s. The avg. purchase is $2-$3 consisting of a variety of different candies.
BTW my publix comparison was directed at the comments made by Jeff and Ron comparing the price of candy at sweets with costco, walmart, target and sam’s.
YTM, Costco sells bulk, sweets sells loose, which means you can buy as little as 1 piece.
In closing,Jeff is great at what he does. I love his blog and look forward to reading it daily. You are correct “what he is doing is getting a discussion going”
What we are doing is keeping his discussion going!!
Gary & YouTheMan:
Just had a chance to read your comments.
You guys are 100% correct–my goal with columns like “Sweets” and “Good Humor” is to get a real good discussion going. It would be kinda boring around here for me to only have the column to read.
Thanks for doing your part,
Thanks for reading…
Gary: I think you should do a drop of math here. There is no way that the average spend is $2-$3 per head. It is way higher. Just figuring on a napkin, let’s say that rent is 50 a sq foot.Im thinking a Sweets is around 2000 sq ft so thats $10,000 a month, that doesnt include labor, and expenses.
So just to pay the rent you would need at $2 a head 5000 customers a month or 166 sales a day. Now figure your cost of goods, labor, utilities,
Try again my friend.
A lot more is being taken in per head.
approx 1000 sq ft store size –
20%-30% cost of goods
labor 1 full time 2-4 part time
no refrigeration,minimal utility costs
2500 tranactions per week avg
Rent is higher than $50 psf
royalty fees are 6%
Mall location = huge traffic
The only way to make real money is with multiple units
London Man,
Starbucks,avg boca store does $1,200,000. yearly selling $3. coffee–sure some spend more, but some spend less.
Gary, you can’t even buy a free glass of water for 2 bucks at boca’s town center.
Roger,
That is why this concept works, this is not a 1 set price for all concept. The kid with $2.11 and the kid with $1.16 can both buy the candies of their choice (over 500 varieties) and leave equally happy.
As long as they have some loose change in their pocket or a couple of dollars Everytime a teen, preteen or adult visits the mall, they can buy something at Sweets From Heaven
Jeff
Have to agree with you on the Apple store , from what I have heard, they will be moving to a space 3 times the size. I believe after the move,the food court will make sense.
Apple sales = $5600. per sq.ft #1 in the U.S.
Costco sales= $1000. per sq.ft. # 6 in the U.S.
Sweets From Heaven sales = $300. or better
$5600 per sq.ft? That’s kind of hard to believe because that would mean that a 5000 sq. ft store would have to do $280 million a year. I know Apple stores rock but that doesn’t seem possible
Herb,
My figure is totally correct, your calculation is off by one zero. Sales per sq .ft. at Apple are actually slightly more.
Tiffany’s is in 2nd place at $2800.per sq. ft.
google average retail sales per sq. ft, you will find a list of the top 20 retailers in America
Every major mall that i’ve been in has some variation on Sweets. Never paid attention to their names but they are one of the stores in the mall.
Everytime that I’ve seen them, i think how cute etc they look butalso think of the ridiculously high prices they get.
Common sense tells me that these stores wouldnt take space unless the numbers work for them to make a profit.
What I also think is that these stores do OK but aren’t huge money makers.
The candy from Sweets From Heaven is amazingly delicious. I haven’t enjoyed such good food in general since living in Chicago, as I have enjoyed here in FL, and this candy rocks!
So fresh, so many varieties, just super yum!
Sweets from Heaven lives up to it’s name. They have great pastries and desserts. It is worth the trip to sample their food. I give them 5 stars. By Gregg L. Friedman MD, Psychiatrist, Hallandale Beach, FL
Your full of it. They don’t sell desserts or pastries.
You were never there.