Family has been making chocolate for 100 years
By Ken Thomas
Click here for updates on this story
WAUPUN, Wisconsin (wiscnews.com) — Members of the Guth family have been making chocolates for 100 years, a legacy that will continue with succeeding generations at 928 E. Main St., near the corner of highways 49 and 151.
Steve Guth has many memories of grandfather Alvin and his father John. The recipes have been closely-guarded secrets since the family started developing them in 1921.
“My grandfather started working for the Yasger family at the Trojan Candy Shop in Beaver Dam. They eventually opened another shop with a breakfast and lunch counter in downtown Waupun at 415 E. Main St. Alvin gradually took over the Waupun shop and it became Guth’s Candy,” Steve said.
“Everybody loved my grandpa. He was a super nice guy. I grew up in the store. I started working there when I was 6. My father taught me the trade, so I’ve been around for a long time.”
Running a shop alone is hard to do profitably, so Steve works hard to broaden his market.
“We have created a wholesale customer base of 250 throughout Wisconsin along with a huge retail clientele. I and my daughter Katie, along with our hard working crew, provide candy that is made daily and distributed as quickly as possible to insure freshness,” Steve said. “I myself produce 200 pounds of caramel corn every day, on average. Now we’re getting into Christmas, so we make 200 to 300 pounds of chocolates every day.”
He and Katie start each day early, making the candy that is coated and packaged by busy helpers.
“Katie cooks all the caramel, toffees, various chocolates and fudge,” Steve said. “We hand-do everything. We hand cut everything. I take care of the popcorn and the snack foods. We’re pretty busy.”
Snacks include five different flavors of pretzels and 17 different flavors of popcorn.
The business offers 35 to 40 different chocolates including nine different kinds of creams, along with chocolate covered nuts, toffees, and caramel and nut combinations. Each batch of candy is made-to-order, so one customer’s pecan turtle could be a different size than another’s to meet individual needs.
“Everything starts from scratch here,” said Katie. “That sets us apart. We’re very proud of that.”
The shop on East Main Street was purchased in 1995, and began in a house which has been incorporated into the current facility.
“The guy who sold it to me said he’d sell it for the same price, with or without the house. So I took the house,” Steve said.
Several additions and remodels followed, until the facility looked brand new. The original house was divided into a first floor and a loft office space. A drive-through building across the street has become an integral part of the operation.
Décor includes an early Guth’s Candy sign from the downtown shop. Photos of Waupun industrialist/artist Clarence Shaler’s sculptures line the stairs to the loft. Many of the candy cases date back to the business’s early days. An old scale and a nut grinder, among other things, go back to the shop’s early days.
The store offers chocolates, baked goods, ice cream, coffees, teas, a large selection of a national brand of jelly beans and salt water taffy. Mary manages a large selection of seasonal and local-interest gifts.
Gift boxes of candy and snacks are a big seller year-round.
The family celebrated the business’s 100 years in June. During the summer open house celebration, the public sampled the business’s treats, and visitors from all over got the chance to learn what Guth’s Candy is all about.
“Guth’s Candy will continue as a family business. Katie has been part of the business for 20 years and we have young grandchildren,” Steve said. “In the next couple of months our dedicated employees and family will be putting in many hours for the Christmas season.”
Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.
