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2021 Annual Tours
2020 RCI Annual Convention



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TOURS

A highlight for many attendees, RCI takes education to the next level through exclusive, behind-the-scenes tours. Gain a new perspective of your craft from fellow candy makers, chocolatiers and artisans sure to inspire ideas to take home to your business. 

In accordance with the mandatory face covering order from the state of Ohio and the city of Columbus, tour participants will be required to wear face masks while on the tour bus.

                                 Register Now                                

THURSDAY

     Dietsch Brothers
Findlay, OH - RCI Member 

What makes this third-generation family business a landmark in Findlay, Ohio? See for yourself how they make many of their confections by hand just as the generations did before them. Plus, enjoy their homemade ice cream—recognized as one of the best in North America three years in a row!

The history of Dietsch Brothers began in the late 1920s when Edward Dietsch opened a candy and ice cream shop with the help of his two younger brothers, Chris and Don. After Edward passed away unexpectedly in 1934, the business was forced to close a couple years later. Chris, Don and the youngest brother Roy, later opened Dietsch Brothers as it’s known today, honoring family recipes previously used by Edward. When Roy’s three sons, Rick, Jeff and Tom joined the business, it continued to thrive and expand. In 1998, Jeff’s daughter, Erika, brought the family business into its third generation.
  

  
 Marie's Candies
West Liberty, OH - RCI Member 

Marie’s Candies produces over 90 varieties of chocolates, including made-from-scratch creams and other hand-dipped and enrobed confections. They also enjoy creating unique gift packages for every season and holiday.  The retail store is housed in a historic train depot carefully renovated by Jay and Kathy King in 1993.

In the 1940s Marie King, and her husband Winfred, started making candy as gifts for friends and family for helping their young family after Winfred became wheelchair bound from polio. What began as a loving gesture in a country kitchen eventually grew into a successful venture for the couple and in 1956 Marie's Candies opened its doors. Along with his two brothers, Jay King worked in the candy business during their teenage years. Over time Jay continued to work in the business, taking ownership in 1977. Two of Jay and Kathy’s three children, son Shannon and daughter Rebecca became third generation owners in 2016. 

 

  

FRIDAY

    Anthony-Thomas Candy Company
Columbus, OH - RCI Member 

Anthony-Thomas Candy Company is the largest family-owned-and-operated candy company in the Midwest. They employ over 200 people and produce an average of 60,000 pounds of confections between two shifts daily. Anthony-Thomas’ success spans five generations with an accumulation of over 185 years of experience between the family.

The origin story of Anthony-Thomas Candy Company represents the fulfillment of Anthony Zanetos’s lifelong dream of a father-son business. When his son, Thomas, returned home from World War II they opened Anthony’s Confectionery. Following the war, candy was in great demand, however the supplies and ingredients needed to make candy were in short supply. When the government made a provision for veterans in the candy business, Thomas further proved himself a valuable partner.
   
 

Coblentz Chocolate Company
Walnut Creek, OH - RCI Member

A tour of Coblentz Chocolate Company will take you back to a nostalgic time when a trip to the candy store was a big deal. It still is at Coblentz, where they invite you to experience their candy kitchen where they cook centers in copper kettles, along with their cluster-making operation, one-shot and enrobing processes, the handmade and moulding departments and their retail store housed in a charming Victorian home.

Jason and Mary Coblentz started Coblentz Chocolates out of their own kitchen in 1987. A lot has changed in that time, but their dedication to satisfying customers who crave premium, fair-trade chocolates, caramels and other confections has only grown. Fresh, local cream and butter are used in their confections, as well as a high-percent cocoa butter, which sets their products apart.