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Show 2F The Salt Lake Tribune Sunday, November 27, 1983 Business Portrait: Tony Sweet Candy Firms R Anthony Tony Sweet admits he has some big shoes to fill replac- mg his grandfather and father as d head of the Salt Lake Sweet Candy Co But he assures every step he takes will be his own You got to remember you are your own person, observed the 41 City-base- d Stanford graduate, elected president and chief executive officer of his familys corpoIn a family ration in February business and in a business thats been around for a long time, its very easy to say, Its always been done that way Why make a change7 . I dont accept the status quo just because its always been that way " But that doesnt mean he advocates change for only changes sake He said he has found it important to make decisions with an eye on current world developments and on past practices The latter, he added, serves almost as a sounding board to bounce ideas off of ' Thats one of the things thats great about having my father here He has the breadth of experience. Marking 52nd Year Leon Jack Sweet, who stepped down as president and CEO of Sweet Candy to make way for his son, is marking his 52nd year at Sweet Can- year-ol- dy He took over the business from his father, the late Leon Sweet, who moved from Portland, Ore , to Salt Lake City in 1900 and founded the firm by organizing a few smaller companies He started in the candy business in Portland in 1891. If Leon Sweets claim to fame was launching the business and Jacks to expanding it and keeping it going during some of the nations most trying economic times, then Tony sees his biggest contribution as building on the familys rich history and good reputation in candy making by expanding marketing He said the push will not be so much m distribution territory as in product mix and packaging He also wants to redesign the firms box chocolate line This is the information age obviously. We use computers and sophisticated market research. Its the only way I think a company is going to be able to survive in the future New Plastic Bag Mr Sweet holds up a new plastic candy bag with the Sweet label and a clear window at the bottom so the candy can be seen to show one of the recent results of the independent research the firm has commissioned He said he also is working on ways to get people to associate the firms name with the candy sold in bulk over the counter Mr. Sweet said his goals have the 4 ,f fupport of his father, who at 74 not only holds the title of chairman of V S f Leader Filling Big Shoes Third-Generati- on the board but still reports to work every day, spending most of his time formulating the firms policies I know m some father and son relationships, the father doesnt want to give up because hes competing with the son or the son is trying to outdo his father I think my father and I have always respected each other a great deal, observed Mr Sweet Never Pushed He added his father also had the foresight to not pressure him into continuing the family business Im the first son m the family and thats sort of why I chose to continue the business I was never pushed I guess I emulated my grandfather I emulated my father I just thought that was a good approach , Mr Sweet said the mutual respect between him and his father didnt emerge without some work on both sides, however Like most fathers and sons theyve had their tense moments, he said He had to learn at an early age and you dont tread on somebody just because hes your father and the boss But he said he admires his father for recognizing his son was going to push sometimes Hes bitten his tongue more than once The new president began working for the firm mostly in summers, beginning when he was 15, and continued until he graduated from college with a bachelor of arts degree m history and a minor degree in economics He served m the U S Air Force Reserve, attended the National Confectioners Association short course m candy manufacturing and returned to Sweet Candy as assistant plant superintendent in 1966 al z&ZiJVP 5 I n. , Manager About five years later, Mr Sweet became vice president and general manager, a position he held until February His sister Virginia Kay, who does marketing work in Denver, is also part of the family management team Mr Sweet has seen first hand the importance of family ownership in the candy business He said it's one of the few businesses whoe success often hinges on it A lot of times smaller businesses bought up by large companies and in several cases they were bought back by the families because the companies couldnt make them go, said the executive He speculated the reason may have something to do with the relationship of family pride to the product Thus, he considers his approximately 130 employees as an exten-tio- n of his family The candy business is not as assembly line as you would think In other words, there is a lot of personal care Weve had the officer of Sweet Candy Co., stands next to machines called pans, good fortune of having extremely good people working for us Just wonderful long-teremployees One salesman, who retired about 10 years ago, had been with us for 62 continuous years, for example Knows Employees That gratitude came across when Mr Sweet conducted a brief tour of the candy plant On each of the buildings three stories, where products ranging from jelly beans to chocolate covered nuts and raisins are manufactured daily ,he greeted every employee he met by their first name They, in every case, returned the courtesy with a smile Its getting to be a real logjam this time of yearin the plant because we dont try to make our candy too far ahead, observed Mr Sweet "The main thing you have to do is manufacture candy fresh, ship it fresh and then insure it gets there protected from heat or too much cold Then it will sell Sweet Candy has three trucks for deliveries along the Wasatch Front But it ships its products to the rest of the state and 11 other states in the West via common carrier Sweets candies are also sold nationally through some major department stores, including Sear Montgomery Ward and J C. Penney Increases Mileage When hes not working or with his family, Mr Sweet is either snow skiing, sailing on the Great Salt Lake or Bear Lake or training for the Boston Marathon He explained he likes those sports because they make him feel good about himself and teach him how to tackle the elements. Although he has been running for which in this case are coating nuts with chocolate. The local firm manufactures about 150 different candy products. 15 years, only in the last 1 12 years has he started training for the Boston Marathon He expects to run about 2,000 miles this year, which compares to about 1,200 miles last year Mr. Sweet also is active in the community He serves as vice president of the board of trustees of Rowland Hall-St- . Mark's School, and is a board member of the National Confectioners Association, which represents about 90 percent of the candy manufacturers m the nation, and the Utah Manufacturers Assn He is also a member of the Salt Lake Rotary and Alta clubs, to which both his father and grandfather also belonged, the Great Salt Lake and Bear Lake yacht clubs and the Utah Roadrunners Club Nevertheless, regardless of '.: w3 A .s mf & jS r Tribune Staff Photo by Van Porter R. Anthony Sweet, president and chief executive &- - V: M vV t Jp- S Ifl whether hes at work or play, he said he cant help feeling like a walking ambassador for the candy industry He speculated thats because his last name has been associated with that industry for so long Its interesting because if you read running magazines, they are down on candy . . . But candy is really good food and it works well for me I eat a lot of candy I still run marathons and I think my performance, if anything, is improved by eating a lot of candy Mr. Sweet said he went to the St George marathon this year with three other runners. When I brought cmamon bears and chocolate covered raisins they were eaten with a great deal of relish So runners like candy whether they want to admit it or not " Joe Rolando |
