Iconic Candy Maker Leaves NJ After 85 Years, Lays Off 300+ Employees

NEWARK, NJ — After nearly 90 years in the Garden State, an iconic candy corporation is moving its headquarters out of New Jersey.

Mars Wrigley, known for creating M&Ms, Snickers, Twix, Milky Way, Skittles, and more confectionery staples, announced it will be leaving Newark and setting up shop in Chicago.

The company intends to make the move in the fall. As a result, 307 Mars Wrigley employees will be laid off by Oct. 16, according to the latest round of Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notifications (WARN) filed with the state.

“Chicago has long been a hub for our business, and now it is our official home for our North America region and our Accelerator Division – firmly establishing our legacy and our future together,” said Global President of Mars Snacking Andrew Clarke. “The Chicagoland area offers the best of all worlds for Mars Snacking – a vibrant urban environment, strong communities and access to world-class talent. We are proud to deepen our roots here, advance the Mars Snacking business, and continue our long-standing commitment to community engagement and responsible business.”

While more than 300 people will be laid off in the move from New Jersey, Mars Wrigley says it is creating more than 600 new jobs to expand its HQ to the Windy City.

Mars Wrigley’s New Jersey history dates to 1941, when Forrest E. Mars Sr. established M&M’s Limited in Newark and introduced M&M’s Plain Chocolate Candies. The candy-coated chocolates were initially produced for soldiers during World War II because their hard shells helped prevent the chocolate from melting. Mars moved its growing New Jersey operations to Hackettstown in 1958, opening a factory and research facility.

Mars acquired chewing-gum maker Wrigley in 2008 and later combined its chocolate and Wrigley divisions to form Mars Wrigley. In 2017, the company announced that its U.S. headquarters would be based in Hackettstown and Newark, bringing the business back to the city where M&M’s originated.

The company’s manufacturing facility in Hackettstown will continue to operate as the Global Headquarters moves to Chicago.