Competition Is Everywhere And It's Not Always Sweet

PERFECT THE PRODUCT, YES , BUT GO ALL-IN ON WHAT NOBODY ELSE CAN REPLICATE : THE EXPERIENCE. THAT’S HOW DYLAN LAUREN BUILTDYLAN’S CANDY BAR.

- J.J. McCorvey

"Oh my God, that’s terrible!” Dylan Lauren has just taken a bite out of an organic peanut butter cup, let out a sound almost identical to Lucille Ball’s signature “uugh,” and promptly spat out the barely masticated substance into a napkin. She then slides one across the table and suggests that I try it for myself. So I do, and she’s right—it’s terrible, and tastes every bit as you’d expect a sugar-free, dairy-free, gluten-free Reese’s-cup facsimile would.

I’m sitting in on a biweekly licensing meeting at the Upper East Side headquarters of Dylan’s Candy Bar, where buyers Lauren Ulstad and Michele Polito present Lauren, who is the cofounder and CEO of the eponymous confectionery empire (and is intent on tasting and testing every single thing her company sells), with samples of products from manufacturers around the world that could sit alongside signature items such as the Whirly Pop lollipop and chocolate-covered Swedish fish. There have been some winners today—from a bar of strawberry-almond nougat to a candy glow stick for the upcoming Halloween season— but one thing’s for sure: The “peanut double chocolate honey patties” ain’t happening.