Florida candy shop makes candy canes for the holidays

BRADENTON BEACH, Flor. (CNN, KYMA/KECY) - Peter Vrinios brings homemade candy canes to The Fudge Factory of Anna Maria Island.

Every November and December, residents can catch a glimpse in the window or walk inside and see how magic is made all from scratch without the use of a machine.

For Vrinios, the family business passed on through four generations, dating 125 years to 1898.

It started with a confectionery in Champaign, Illinois. That local landmark even landed on RIO Speedwagon's back cover of their "T.W.O." album in the 1970s.

In 2004, Vrinios moved to Florida with his family, dragging along a big marble table used for candy making in Sarasota. He met Benjamin Kaminecki, owner of The Fudge Factory, and the rest is history.

"I threw my pitch to him, 'You don't make candy canes. I do. I'd love to come in here every December and do my candy cane tradition and keep it going. I'll bring the marble table into your place and you can use it year round and I'll use it in December,' and he thought it was a great idea," Vrinios shared.

The fudge truffles and turtles inside the fudge shop, located on Bridge Street, are also homemade.

"All the recipes of that are my fudge and my chocolate and all that came from my family. My family's been in candy business for over 80 years together," Kaminecki spoke.

The two businessmen, Vrinios and Kaminecki have had some sweet success keeping traditions alive.

"How you make a tradition last hundreds of years? I'd say two things: Customer service and excellence in your product," Vrinios expressed.