Lauren - Dylans candy bar: unwrap your sweet life

eye candy

CANDY KALEIDOSCOPE

Sometimes candy is so beautiful, I dont even want to eat it. It pains me to pop a perfect rainbow nonpareil in my mouth, when I can sit back and admire its artistry. For this reason, I display hundreds of candies around my home, on shelves, on the coffee table, as the dining table centerpiece. I love to surround myself with their myriad colors; they keep me happy and invigorated.

To me, candy is not just something you enjoy in your mouth; its something you savor visually as well. Its as much art to me as a Warhol or a Lichtenstein. I think I inherited my appreciation for color and art from my family. Most generations of my family are artists in some form, whether they are painters, designers, filmmakers, or dancers. We all tend to be sensitive to color and how it moves us; we express ourselves by wearing it or by decorating our personal spaces with it.

Throughout my childhood, I went into my dads offices and watched him design clothing. I was fascinated by the brightly colored swatches of fabric in giant glass apothecary jars. I literally wanted to climb the shelves, reach into the jars, and eat the fabric! The colors were mouthwatering! This was a true case of synesthesia. I was inspired by seeing how the fall and spring collections were differentiated by shades and gradations of color: tans, olives, hunter green, and maroon for fall; and fuchsia, turquoise, and bright orange for spring. I am always drawn to the summer collection of polos and sweaters that are merchandised in a rainbow. Its challenging to pick a favorite, since each one looks even better in the midst of the other colors.

Similar to fashion, different colors of candy are emphasized during different seasons. Pastels in pink, blue, purple, green, orange, and yellow are extremely popular for spring. Bold red, emerald green, white, blue, gold, and silver are more pronounced in the winter months. But unlike fashion, its okay to buy a candy in any color, even if its not in season!

When I was designing Dylans Candy Bar, I chose white as the backdrop. I wanted the candy colors to really leap off the shelves and out of the bins, like art displayed on a white gallery wall. The candy fixtures and architecture were created to match the colors of actual candy, so customers could feel they were in a modern Candy Land. Colors emit energy and cheer people up. The kaleidoscope of colors at Dylans Candy Bar is one of the reasons people say it is one of the happiest places on earth. Im extremely particular about the colors we use when designing Dylans Candy Bar products. Im obsessed with the Pantone book (the color guide and my bible), and I use it to ensure everything is printed to match the candy colors. Im a stickler; I will insist we redo items several times until they match. It will bother me all day if I feel the color is off.

When I chose the nine colors to use in my logo, my financial advisers almost had a heart attack! Most logos are one color because its easier to print and way less expensive. But to me, the variety of color was so reminiscent of candy and so important to make our products shine apart from other brands as more unique and giftable. I learned from my dad and other successful company founders that color is crucial for brand recognition and memory. Everyone knows Tiffany blue, Barbie hot pink, and McDonalds red and yellow!

Color plays one of the biggest roles in influencing customers to buy products, from cars to shoes to candy. According to the Institute for Color Research, people make a subconscious judgment about a person, environment or product within 90 seconds of initial viewing and 6290% of this assessment is based on color alone. Colors also have been proven to catch shoppers eyes and extend the time they spend looking at something.

When my team of buyers and I attend the Candy Expos, color plays a major role in deciding what products make the cut. Typically a collection that has all the rainbow colors will be bought. Our goal is for Dylans Candy Bar to have the absolute largest variety of flavors and colors in all candy categories, from rock candy to gummy bears, from filled chocolates and gumballs to jelly beans. Color has the ability to affect mood and bring back memories. I think my customers get nostalgic for their youth when they come in the store. They see all the primary-colored candies, and they subconsciously remind them of their earlier toys and games. Suddenly their memory of first-grade art class and learning roygbiv (the rainbow) is evoked.

Color also has a strong impact on how people perceive products to taste or smell. We form these color-flavor associations at an early age. For example, yellow candy is typically expected to taste like fresh lemons. Customers feel rewarded when they can predict that flavor before they bite into a yellow candy.