Brach's

Brach's Confections is 101 year old (as of 2005) a candy/sweets company, which produces and/or invented many modern icons of the sugary world.

It was founded in 1904 by Emil J. Brach, a son of German immigrants who had recently invested in a candy factory which failed, and decided that he could do a better job of it himself, opening a candy store and factory in Chicago.

The company's first product was caramels, which it produced through a process which allowed it to underprice competition, creating a large demand. This product is still a company mainstay to the present day.

The company is also credited with "inventing" several marketing techniques, like barrel displays, glass candy counters, and the adaptation of old general store-type bulk purchasing to modern supermarkets with "pick-a-mix", a self-serve set of open candy containers which allow customers to scoop candy into bags to be sold by the pound.

The company was eventually sold to American Home Products, which was eventually bought by Jacobs Suchard, which eventually was sold to Phillip Morris except for Brach's, which was actually retained by Klaus J. Jacobs in the transaction.