Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory is an international franchisor, confectionery manufacturer and retail operator in the United States, with outlets in Panama, the Philippines, and the United Arab Emirates.[1] The company is based in the town of Durango in southwestern Colorado.

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory
TypePublic
Nasdaq: RMCF
Russell Microcap Index component
IndustryChocolate and other confectionery
Founded1981
HeadquartersDurango, Colorado, United States
Number of locations
360 (2019)
Key people
Franklin E. Crail, Founder and CEO
Revenue34,545,447 United States dollar (2019) 
Number of employees
231 (2019) 
Websitewww.rmcf.com

The company manufactures chocolate candies and other confections in its 53,000-square-foot (4,900 m2) factory to supply its franchise locations.[2] The factory produces approximately 300 chocolate candies and other confectionery products. These products include many varieties of clusters, caramels, creams, meltaways, truffles and molded chocolates. Chocolates and confections with a short shelf life are prepared at the store level where customers can observe the process. [3]

The company has been publicly traded on the NASDAQ exchange since 1985 under the symbol "RMCF".[2]

History

The company was founded by Frank Crail, who had recently moved to Durango from Newport Beach, California to raise his family in a small town. He later confessed to Candy industry magazine that he would have opened a See's Candies, but the company doesn't sell franchises. In 1981, the first store was opened on Main Street by Frank and two partners.[4] In 1982, the company's first franchises, one in Colorado Springs and one in Park City, Utah were opened. An offsite factory was also built that year. In 1983, the two other partners left the business. In 1985, the company went public on the NASDAQ. In 1996, Whitman's Candies made an offer to buy the company for US$16 million. The offer was rejected by management after the company's results improved in late 1999.

In 2013, Kellogg's in the United States partnered with the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory to release a cereal under the latter's brand which consists of sweetened corn flakes, almond slices, and chocolate pieces. After a brief test run, Kellogg's expanded the limited edition cereal nationwide in 2014, in part due to positive reviews and growing consumer interest in the product.[5] It was discontinued in 2015.

References
  1. "US-based Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory appoints key independent chairperson". Confectionery Production. Retrieved 2021-09-25.
  2. "About Us". Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. Retrieved 14 March 2013.
  3. "Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory". Retail Merchandiser. 2011-12-19. Retrieved 2021-09-25.
  4. "How a tech executive turned a fudge store into an international candy empire". Fortune. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  5. Kellogg's Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Chocolatey Almond Cereal review from Mr. Breakfast (May 23, 2013)
A typical store exterior.
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