George J. Howe Company

What George J. Howe Company does

George J. Howe Company is a privately held wholesale food distributor headquartered in Grove City, Pennsylvania, founded in 1927 by George J. Howe. The company distributes candy, coffee, and nuts to retailers and foodservice providers across the United States, with a catalog of 237+ candy SKUs and 43 nut SKUs covering bulk, packaged, and specialty varieties (including sugar-free and flavored coffees such as Amaretto, Caramel Pecan, Hazelnut, and Colombian). There is no proprietary technology platform; the underlying capability is physical wholesale distribution supported by standard e-commerce websites (georgehowe.com for wholesale and candycoffeenuts.com for retail).

The company's go-to-market is sales-led and B2B, with accounts restricted to businesses holding a Federal Tax ID and a commercial (non-residential) address. Revenue is generated through unit-priced wholesale sales on a pay-as-you-go basis, with free shipping on orders over $300. Distribution runs through four channels: Direct Store Delivery (DSD) with in-store shelf stocking for retail accounts, standard wholesale distribution, Private Label/custom-branded packaging services, and a direct-to-consumer retail site. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is only visible to approved wholesale customers, with typical order processing of 1-3 business days.

In January 2023 the company, operating as "The Howe Co. of Grove City," acquired Mister Snacks to expand its nut and nut-mix product portfolio, representing the only documented recent inorganic growth event. The company remains independently owned with no external funding, no parent company, and no disclosed leadership team beyond founder George J. Howe and President Francis Smith. Headcount is 51-100 employees, consistent with a regional-to-national wholesale distributor.

Name

George J. Howe Company

Legal name

The George J. Howe Company

Website

https://georgehowe.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1927

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

George J. Howe Company is a Pennsylvania-based wholesale distributor of candy, coffee, and nuts, founded in 1927, serving retailers and foodservice providers in the United States through Direct Store Delivery, wholesale, private label, and e-commerce channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wholesale Food Distribution

NAICS

Other Grocery and Related Products Merchant Wholesalers (42449), General Line Grocery Merchant Wholesalers (424410)

SIC

Wholesale-Groceries & Related Products (5140), Wholesale-Groceries, General Line (5141)

akta.pro primary industry

Bulk Confectionery, Nuts & Snack Wholesalers-to-Consumer (CRAHAMAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Bulk Beverage & Coffee/Tea Supply Stores (Retail + Wholesale) (CRAHAMAH)

Keywords

• Wholesale candy distribution
• Bulk coffee supply
• Wholesale nut supply
• Direct store delivery
• Private label snacks

Headquarters

HQ city

Grove City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Wholesale Candy, Coffee & Nut Sales: The company generates revenue through wholesale distribution of candy, coffee, and nuts to retailers and foodservice providers. Products are sold in bulk cases at wholesale pricing, with free shipping on orders over $300.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

George J. Howe Company is a full-service wholesale distributor of candy, coffee, and nuts, supplying retailers and foodservice providers in the United States. The company offers bulk cases at wholesale pricing to approved business accounts (requiring a Federal Tax ID and commercial address), and complements its product portfolio with Direct Store Delivery (DSD) service, wholesale distribution logistics, and Private Label custom packaging. It also operates a retail e-commerce storefront (CandyCoffeeNuts.com) for individual consumer purchases.

Product overview

George J. Howe Company operates as a wholesale food distributor specializing in three core product categories: Wholesale Candy, Wholesale Coffee, and Wholesale Nuts. The company offers a unified portfolio combining physical products with distribution services, including Direct Store Delivery, Wholesale Distribution, and Private Label options for custom branding. The candy division features over 237 products including bulk candy, packaged laydown bags, peg bags, and sugar-free options. The coffee division offers ground and whole bean varieties. The nuts division provides bulk nuts, snack mixes, and packaged nut products totaling 43 items.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CandyCoffeeNuts.com: Retail e-commerce website operated by the company for direct-to-consumer sales of candy, coffee, and nuts

Products and services

• Wholesale Candy Bulk and packaged candy products including hard candies, gummies, chocolates, mints, and sugar-free options sold in wholesale quantities to retailers and businesses.
• Wholesale Coffee Specialty ground and whole bean coffee offered in retail bags and bulk quantities, featuring flavored varieties such as Amaretto, Caramel Pecan, Hazelnut, and Colombian, sold wholesale to retailers and businesses.
• Wholesale Nuts Bulk and packaged nuts including almonds, cashews, pecans, pistachios, trail mixes, and dried fruits sold wholesale to retailers and foodservice providers.
• Direct Store Delivery (DSD) DSD service that delivers products directly to retail store locations, enabling inventory replenishment, shelf stocking, and a direct relationship with store management.
• Wholesale Distribution Wholesale distribution service providing candy, coffee, and nuts to retailers and foodservice businesses through approved wholesale accounts.
• Private Label Custom branded packaging service allowing businesses to create their own branded candy, coffee, and nut products.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Mister SnacksminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 January 2023The Howe Co. of Grove City acquired Mister Snacks in January 2023 to expand its nut and nut mix business. This acquisition represents a strategic expansion of the company's product portfolio in the nuts segment.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Peers

• UNFI (United Natural Foods):
• Brown & Haley:
• Warrell Corporation:

Direct peers

• Superior Nut & Candy Co. A direct peer in B2B wholesale of bulk candy, nuts, and confections serving retailers, fundraising organizations, and foodservice operators. Closely comparable product mix and customer base, with broader SKU depth in nuts.
• Coffee Holding Company: A wholesale coffee roaster and supplier of roasted, ground, and flavored coffees under private label and proprietary brands. A direct overlap on the coffee leg of George J. Howe's portfolio, particularly for the wholesale and private label channels.
• Farmer Brothers: A U.S. coffee roaster, wholesaler, and foodservice distributor supplying DSD-roasted coffee to restaurants and retailers. Directly comparable in DSD coffee distribution to foodservice customers, with overlapping flavored and specialty coffee SKUs.

Broad incumbents

• KeHE Distributors: A large specialty and natural food distributor supplying independent grocers, c-stores, and foodservice operators nationwide. Comparable go-to-market and customer overlap, but with materially broader category coverage and a national distribution network.
• McLane Company: One of the largest U.S. wholesale distributors to convenience stores, mass merchants, and foodservice chains. Overlaps with George J. Howe's candy, coffee, and nut categories as part of a much wider assortment and a national DSD-style route network.
• Sysco: The largest U.S. broadline foodservice distributor, serving restaurants, hotels, and institutions. George J. Howe's foodservice channel overlaps with Sysco on candy, coffee, and nut supply, though Sysco operates at massive national scale and a far wider category range.
• Imperial Dade: A large North American foodservice and retail distributor with a broad janitorial, packaging, and foodservice product line, including snacks and confections. A broader-line peer whose customer base (foodservice and retail) overlaps with George J. Howe's target segments.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/howecandynutscoffee
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/george-j-howe-company

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about George J. Howe Company