Jeff Bart, owner of one of the sweetest establishments in Concord, has heard some of his customers are worried his Granite State Candy Shoppe is leaving Warren Street.
He says they wonder if the shop is searching for greener pastures, or a more inviting place to stimulate business.
Fear not. Sales have remained solid, so strong in fact that Bart needed more room to make his homemade fudge, candy and ice cream, outgrowing the space in the back of his Warren Street store.
He began moving his candy-making equipment to a new production facility at an industrial park on Hall Street. He now has three establishments in his stable, including storefronts in Concord and one on Elm Street in Manchester.
“We’re not moving,” Bart said. “That’s the most important thing to know. We are not moving our original shop.”
Bart comes from a Concord family with deep roots. He was born here, educated here, and his business continues to thrive here.
Bart’s father and uncle attended Concord High. They grew up on Dunklee Street. Bart lived on Merrimack Street. His mother still lives there, in the house where Bart grew up.
Bart’s grandfather, Peter Bart, moved from Greece to Lawrence, Mass., in 1909 and worked for a candy maker, learning the nuances of making great fudge. A few years later, in 1927, Peter founded Granite State Candy and moved into its current home, the brick building on Warren Street.
That became available after the Concord Fencing Club vacated the space. Bart called the discovery “serendipitous.”
Peter’s sons, Costa and George, ran the show after Peter’s retirement, and the torch was eventually passed to Costa’s sons, Jeff and Mike.
Sadly, Mike died suddenly from a heart attack in 2015 when he was in his 40s. The brothers were 18 months apart in age, business partners, and friends.
“We worked together for many years,” Jeff Bart said. “We were close. There is a great deal of pride associated with my family. Mike would have been thrilled for us to go to this next place. For certain.”
The Granite State website says that some of their grandfather’s original recipes are still used. So is some of the old equipment, dating back 100 years.
The heavy lifting from Warren Street to Hall Street was necessary for the company’s growth.
“Yes, business has been fine,” Bart said, “and the Manchester shop has seen growth.”
He hopes his new 6,000 square foot manufacturing space finished this summer, the slowest time of the year to sell chocolate and candy. That will give Bart a chance to settle in, see what works, create a rhythm, a routine.
“It has been progressively difficult for years to produce enough products in this space,” Bart said of the downtown Concord location. “We have contracts for carpentry work and plumbing. This is a local effort to get us to a place where we can move to, and on short notice.”
And remember, his allegiance to Concord remains sweet.
“We’re not leaving here,” Bart said. “This store will always be here and always be open.”