26
SOUTHERN SENIOR MAGAZINE
| Winter 2016
n a pristine facility set in the Fords Creek
community just outside of Poplarville in
south Mississippi, Laura Robicheaux and her
staff create beautiful candy delights to please
the eyes and tease the palette. For more than
twenty years, Robicheaux’s Specialty Candy, Inc. has been
using the finest chocolates, caramels and nuts to meet the
needs of both wholesale and retail customers.
Begun in 1992,
the company remains
family
owned.
Robicheaux retired
from teaching prior
to
moving
to
Poplarville
from
Destrehan, LA. She
was unwilling to set-
tle for a “nothing to
do” retirement but
didn’t want a job she
where she had to
punch a time clock.
She decided to use her love of candy making to fill her time.
She began in the small cabin in which she and husband
Francis lived during construction of their house. Over time,
the building has received two additions to become
the present spacious candy factory overlooking a pond on
the property.
The company size has waxed and waned over the years.
During the biggest times, Robicheaux employed as many as
eighteen employees. The present core of four employees and
Robicheaux now handle the flow of sumptuous treats. Each
of those employees has been with her for a decade or more.
Their ages range from in the forties to seventies, and they
work as a family.
Robicheaux credits her husband Francis with helping her
to succeed in
the venture. His
willingness to
handle many of
the
necessary
tasks of keeping
the company going,
including making
deliveries for her and taking care of the trash generated, has
freed her to continue creating her gourmet treats for
the nation.
Another change has come through the sizes of pieces in
response to customer dietary changes and increase in the
price of ingredients. The addition of many of the current gift
items came as clients described something they wanted for
their business.
None of the elegant gourmet treats spend time waiting to
be ordered. Robicheaux and her staff prepare the candies for
each order when they are ordered so as to provide the fresh-
est product possible. This timely processing works because
she has kept the company to a manageable size, with her
dedicated staff of ladies who know exactly what steps are
involved in each type of candy.
The sumptuous sweets are made, hand decorated for the
appropriate season, hand packed as the client requests and
then carefully packed to protect them as they journey to their
destinations. Packages are picked up every weekday (except
Fridays in the summer) and sped on their way via UPS.
Summertime deliveries (May 1-Sept. 30) cost a little more,
since a cool pack is added to each package to help protect
the contents).
Robicheaux purchases her chocolate basics in shipments
of 3,000 pounds each. The bulk chocolate is melted and ad-
ditional ingredients as appropriate are added to the rich
liquid. Most of the candies use milk chocolate, with some
white chocolate and dark chocolate candies available, too.
By Mary Beth Magee
I
Robicheaux’s Specialty Candy
Sweets in the Country
Four staff members and owner Laura Robicheaux (far right)
The bestselling turtles
come in specialty shapes,
including Christmas trees
