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Kemnitz Fine Candies has been in the news on more than one occasion! From our triumphant re-opening to our award winning cherry cordials, it's our pleasure to share each story with you. 

Downtown Plymouth

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In The News

Written by Amber Ainsworth for Fox 2 News 

View the story on Fox 2 here.

Kemnitz Fine Candies in Downtown Plymouth reopens under new leadership after owners retire

A longtime Plymouth business that closed earlier this year is open again under new leadership.

Kemnitz Fine Candies closed in February when the owners retired. It was purchased by the Collick family in April, and celebrated the reopening Saturday.

 

Written by David Veselenak for Hometown Life 

View the story on Hometown Life here.

After months of closure, Plymouth's Kemnitz Fine Candies reopens under new ownership

Lori and Randy Collick purchased Kemnitz Fine Candies in downtown Plymouth earlier this year, reopening the longtime shop along Ann Arbor Trail.

Randy and Lori Collick have the demeanors of two kids in a candy store. Which is perfect, because they now own a candy store.

The Hamburg residents recently bought and reopened Kemnitz Fine Candies in downtown Plymouth, bringing back a longtime name in the community after the business closed earlier this year. Reopening the shop has gotten the community excited, they said.

"Eighty percent of the people (that come in), the first thing they say is, 'Thank you,'" Randy Collick said. 

The shop at 896 W. Ann Arbor Trail reopened earlier this summer after previous owners Cindy and Everett Smith decided it was time to retire after running the longtime shop for decades. 

How the couple came to own the shop stemmed all from a dream: Lori Collick said she dreamed she and her husband bought a candy company.

"The next day, we saw this for sale," Lori Collick said. 

After thinking it through, the Collicks crafted a plan to purchase the shop and eventually became the frontrunners to take over the shop. They put in several months of work to update the shop. They've redone plenty inside, including new paint, new floors and spruced up the look. They've kept the candy display case and cabinets, and still use the Kemnitz signature look on the candy boxes, albeit with a refreshed feel.

"I want people to know we're not changing it," Lori Collick said. "It might look a little different, but it should taste the same. We've just brought it into the 21st century."

Carolina Reaper pepper chocolate, anyone?Randy Collick with a box of chocolates made with hot pepper filling. Options include jalapeno, scorpion and Carolina Reaper. The box of hot chocolates is one of new ideas the Collicks have for the longtime candy shop.

While the classics return, they hope to introduce a few new twists to the menu. One such idea? The Chocolate Pepper Challenge, a case of chocolates filled with hot pepper fillings made from jalapenos, habaneros and and ghost peppers. Increasing in degrees of heat, they think the box will make for a fun challenge for those with strong affections toward spicy foods. 

"Hopefully it's just one of those things that just catches," Randy Collick said. "It's just fun. We want to have fun."

They've also added other items to the display case, including caramels topped with pink Himalayan salt, as well as their South American clusters, made with Brazil nuts and coconut. Online ordering is also expected to make an appearance later this year when the weather begins to cool down. 

The Collicks continue to use the Kemnitz production kitchen in Plymouth's Old Village but plan on relocating that to a bigger space in town. There, Lori Collick said, they hope to increase production and possibly offer candy-making classes to groups as well.

The shop is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. More information can be found on the shop's website, kemnitzfinecandies.com.

The Collicks hope the community can see the passion they have for the history of the shop, keeping many of the same traditions alive, including the longtime name. They both are excited at bringing the Kemnitz name back to life.

"It's a labor of love," Lori Collick said. "We're trying to stay as true to the recipes."

The interior of Kemnitz Fine Candies has a new look, including a fresh coat of paint.