{{Short description|Shop selling sweets/candies/lollies}} {{redirect|Candy shop|the 50 Cent song|Candy Shop}} [[File:Colorful and Inviting Candy Store (14867133277).jpg|thumb|IT'SUGAR in the Harborplace Pratt Street Pavilion|upright=1.2]]
A '''confectionery store''' or '''confectionery shop''' (more commonly referred to as a '''sweet shop''' in the United Kingdom, a '''candy shop''' or '''candy store''' in North America, or a '''lolly shop'''<ref>{{cite book |url=http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t157.e31829 |title=Lolly (n) |publisher=oxfordreference.com |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-19-551796-5 |editor1-last=Moore |editor1-first=Bruce |edition=2nd |access-date=2011-04-29}}</ref> in Australia and New Zealand) is a store that sells confectionery. Most confectionery stores are filled with an assortment of sweets far larger than a typical grocery or convenience store. They may sell locally-made sweets distinct to the region<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Cорокіна |first=А. М. |date=2024-03-29 |title=COMPETITIVENESS OF DOMESTIC CONFECTIONERY ENTERPRISES ON THE EUROPEAN MARKET |url=https://ej.journal.kspu.edu/index.php/ej/article/view/833 |journal=Scientific Bulletin of Kherson State University. Series Economic Sciences |language=en |issue=50 |pages=54–59 |doi=10.32999/ksu2307-8030/2024-50-8 |issn=2664-3545}}</ref>, international sweets from other countries, or "vintage" delicacies like rock candy or liquorice<ref>{{cite web |title=Retro Candy Timeline |url=https://www.candyfavorites.com/shop/history-american-candy.php |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060827010635/http://www.candyfavorites.com/shop/history_american_candy.asp |archive-date=2006-08-27 |access-date=2024-04-22}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Fannie May – History of Chocolate |url=http://www.fanniemay.com/chocolatepassion/history.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061017172321/http://www.fanniemay.com/chocolatepassion/history.asp |archive-date=2006-10-17 |access-date=2006-09-10}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Our Story – Orne's Candy Store |url=https://www.ornescandystore.com/our-story |access-date=2024-04-22}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=CXP Brief A Detailed Description of the Candy Store and Candy Shop - History |url=http://www.candyxpress.com/index.asp?PageAction=Custom&ID=42 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140821010938/http://www.bwcliffordcandy.com/candystorecandyshopdetaileddescription.aspx |archive-date=2014-08-21 |access-date=23 April 2024}}</ref>.
==History and prevalence == thumb|upright|"The Great Buddha Sweet Shop" from Akizato Rito's ''Miyako meisho zue'' (1787)Dedicated confectionery stores are popular in many countries due to their low start-up cost, high markup potential, and diverse appeal<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dudik |first=George F. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sPUngmEppsYC&ots=VISimX8I4V&dq=confectionery%20stores&lr&pg=PA9#v=onepage&q=confectionery%20stores&f=false |title=Establishing and Operating a Confectionery-tobacco Store |date=1946 |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last=Nuttall |first=C. |title=Chocolate marketing and other aspects of the confectionery industry worldwide |date=1994 |work=Industrial Chocolate Manufacture and Use |pages=362–385 |editor-last=Beckett |editor-first=S. T. |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-2111-2_20 |access-date=2026-05-16 |place=Boston, MA |publisher=Springer US |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-1-4615-2111-2_20 |isbn=978-1-4615-2111-2 |last2=Hart |first2=W. A.}}</ref>, but their numbers vary widely within the country and among the countries.<ref>{{cite web |last=McFall |first=Marni Rose |date=2024-11-18 |title=Map shows candy capitals of the US |url=https://www.newsweek.com/map-shows-states-most-candy-stores-per-capita-1987489 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250627185950/https://www.newsweek.com/map-shows-states-most-candy-stores-per-capita-1987489 |archive-date=2025-06-27 |access-date=2025-06-27 |website=Newsweek}}</ref> Candy shops have existed for centuries, both as retailers or candy makers (where confections are made on-site, sometimes in view of customers). Akisato Ritō's ''Miyako meisho zue'' (An Illustrated Guide to the Capital) from 1787 describes a confectionery store in Kyoto, situated near the Great Buddha erected by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, then one of the town's most important tourist attractions<ref>{{cite book |last1=Berry |first1=Mary Elizabeth |title=Japan in Print Information and Nation in the Early Modern Period |publisher=University of California Press |year=2006 |isbn=9780520254176 |location=Berkeley, California |pages=182–184}}</ref>. Guinness World Records has recognized a shop in the village of Pateley Bridge, North Yorkshire, England, as the oldest continuously operating sweet shop in the world.<ref name=":02">{{cite news |date=2021-03-02 |title=Young entrepreneur buys world's oldest sweet shop in Pateley Bridge |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-york-north-yorkshire-56258707 |access-date=2021-07-06 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref> The Oldest Sweet Shop in the World was founded in 1827.<ref name=":02" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Oldest Sweet Shop In The World |url=https://oldestsweetshop.co.uk/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050430165938/http://www.oldestsweetshop.co.uk:80/ |archive-date=2005-04-30 |access-date=2021-07-06 |website=The Oldest Sweet Shop In The World |language=en}}</ref> In 1917, there were 55 confectionery shops in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, which had a population of 70,000 people.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gilbert |first1=Stephanie Patterson |year=2005 |title=Bakers and Confectioners of Harrisburg's Old Eighth Ward, 1890–1917 |journal=Pennsylvania History: A Journal of Mid-Atlantic Studies |publisher=Penn State University Press |volume=72 |issue=4 |pages=428–442 |doi=10.2307/27778700 |jstor=27778700 |s2cid=185925593 |doi-access=free}} {{registration required}}</ref>. In Sweden, confectionery stores are the key reason the nation leads the world in candy consumption.<ref>{{cite web |last= |first= |date=2009-10-29 |title=Svenskarna äter mest godis i världen |trans-title=Swedes eat the most candy in the world |url=https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/svenskarna-ater-mest-godis-i-varlden |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20250530123713/https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/svenskarna-ater-mest-godis-i-varlden |archive-date=2025-05-30 |access-date=2025-06-27 |website=SVT |language=sv |quote=På tre decennier har vi fördubblat vår godiskonsumtion. Och det är införandet av plockgodis i mitten av 80-talet som drivit på konsumtionsökningen. |trans-quote=In three decades, we have doubled our candy consumption. And it is the introduction of bulk confectionery in the mid-1980s that has driven the increase in consumption.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=2021-12-09 |title=En ständig kamp mot sockret |trans-title=A constant battle with sugar |url=https://www.lu.se/artikel/en-standig-kamp-mot-sockret |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20250627185612/https://www.lu.se/artikel/en-standig-kamp-mot-sockret |archive-date=2025-06-27 |access-date=2025-06-27 |website=Lund University |language=sv |quote=Sedan lösgodiset introducerades på 1980-talet har godiskonsumtionen i Sverige ökat från 10 till 15 kg per person och år. Idag äter svenskarna mest godis i hela världen. |trans-quote=Since the introduction of bulk confectionery in the 1980s, candy consumption in Sweden has increased from 10 to 15 kg per person per year. Today, Swedes eat the most candy in the world.}}</ref> In 2024 there were over 23 thousand stores across the United States, with Vermont specifically being called "The Candy Capital" with 12.2 confectionery stores per 100,000 residents.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.qualityassurancemag.com/news/candy-capitals-of-the-us-revealed/ |access-date=2025-10-13 |website=www.qualityassurancemag.com}}</ref>
Confectionery stores contribute to higher candy and sugar consumption around the world. 2023 was a record sales year for candies and chocolates in the United States, with a survey showing that 98% of consumers bought candy that year.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Chocolate and Candy Sales Hit All-Time High |url=https://www.convenience.org/Media/Daily/2024/March/13/6-Chocolate-Candy-Sales-All-Time-High_CatMan |access-date=2025-10-13 |website=www.convenience.org}}</ref>
==Offerings== {{Expand section|date=July 2015}} thumb|Interior of Dylan's Candy Bar in Miami {{See also|List of candies}}Store may offer regional confectioneries like cochinito de piloncillo, Blackpool rock, or dodol, or regional variations of confections like fudge, gumdrops, or hard candies. Others may focus on novelty candies (like promotional snacks, or unusual flavors<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Violaris |first=Elena |date=October 23, 2022 |title=The Sweet Shop and the Toy Shop: Consumption, Sign and Play in the Confectionery Industry |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/criq.12634 |journal=Critical Quarterly |language=en |volume=64 |issue=3 |pages=107–126 |doi=10.1111/criq.12634 |issn=0011-1562}}</ref>) flavored popcorn, or toffees<ref>{{Cite web |last=mikey |date=2026-04-05 |title=K-Pop Merch Beyond Albums: Why Novelty Candy Gifts Are the Perfect Fan Present in Singapore |url=https://sticky.com.sg/articles/kpop-fan-gifts-candy-singapore/ |access-date=2026-05-16 |website=Sticky Singapore |language=en-SG}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Carr |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ATOkPGmykfcC&lpg=PA7&ots=izdG8GNXwc&dq=confectionery%20stores&lr&pg=PA12#v=onepage&q=confectionery%20stores&f=false |title=Candymaking in Canada: The History and Business of Canada's Confectionery Industry |date=September 1, 2003 |publisher=Dundurn |isbn=978-1-55002-395-4 |language=en}}</ref>. Stores may appeal to specific markets, like teenagers, wealthy consumers, or tourists<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jolliffe |first=Lee |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fpl4XlX2D1UC&pg=PA158#v=onepage&q&f=false |title=Sugar Heritage and Tourism in Transition |date=2012-12-06 |publisher=Channel View Publications |isbn=978-1-84541-389-7 |language=en}}</ref>. They may have specialties like allergy-free selections, sweets shaped like genitals or sex organs, or vegan products<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vegan Confectionery Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecast 2032 - By Product, Technology, Grade, Application, End-user, Region: (North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America and Middle East and Africa) |url=https://www.marketresearch.com/Fairfield-Market-Research-v4228/Vegan-Confectionery-Global-Size-Share-39463916/ |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250317085151/https://www.marketresearch.com/Fairfield-Market-Research-v4228/Vegan-Confectionery-Global-Size-Share-39463916/ |archive-date=2025-03-17 |access-date=2026-05-16 |website=www.marketresearch.com |language=en}}</ref>. Some current and former stores have become tourist attractions, like the M&M's World, Minnesota's Largest Candy Store, and Ghirardelli Square<ref>{{Cite web |title=M&M'S Stores {{!}} M&M'S {{!}} M&M'S |url=https://www.mms.com/en-us/explore/mms-stores |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250628182705/https://www.mms.com/en-us/explore/mms-stores |archive-date=2025-06-28 |access-date=2025-10-13 |website=www.mms.com |language=en-us}}</ref>.
==See also== {{Commons category|Candy stores}} {{Portal|Food}} * Candy making * ''Chocolaterie'' * ''Konditorei'' * 1858 Bradford sweets poisoning
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Retail}}
* Category:Retailers by type of merchandise sold