What Lily's Sweets does

Lily's Sweets is a Boulder, Colorado-based confectionery brand that produces and sells no-sugar-added chocolate bars, baking chips, peanut butter cups, gummies, chocolate-covered almonds, and chocolate-covered caramels under the LILY'S label. Its core technology is a proprietary sweetening system built around stevia extract combined with sugar alcohols (erythritol, isomalt, allulose) and soluble corn fiber, delivering products with 1–4g net carbs per serving and no added refined or processed sugar. The portfolio is certified Gluten-Free by GFCO, Non-GMO Project Verified (selected SKUs), Fair Trade Certified (cocoa sourced via Fair Trade USA), and OU-D Kosher, with unsweetened chocolate and cocoa butter as the base for most products.

The company distributes primarily through mass grocery (Walmart, Target, Kroger, Publix) and natural food retailers (Whole Foods, Sprouts, independents), supplemented by a direct-to-consumer e-commerce site at lilys.com that doubles as a recipe and content platform. Revenue is generated through one-time retail purchase transactions at point-of-sale plus DTC online sales, with no subscription or licensing model. Marketing leans heavily on organic social (Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest) and recipe-driven content marketing to drive usage occasion and basket size.

Founded in 2010 by Cynthia Tice and Chuck Genuardi, Lily's is wholly owned by The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) and operates as a brand subsidiary within Hershey's broader chocolate and better-for-you snacking portfolio. The brand is positioned as a category leader in no-sugar-added confection, with a stated mission of making chocolate accessible to consumers managing sugar intake, including diabetic, keto, and gluten-free audiences, while remaining a mainstream-tasting indulgence. The most recent material move was a 2026 recipe reformulation aimed at improving taste to broaden appeal beyond the original niche consumer base.

Name

Lily's Sweets

Legal name

The Hershey Company

Website

https://lilys.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Lily's Sweets is a Hershey-owned, Boulder-based confectionery brand producing no-sugar-added chocolate bars, baking chips, peanut butter cups, gummies, and chocolate-covered snacks sold through mass grocery, natural food retailers, and DTC e-commerce to health-conscious, diabetic, keto, and gluten-free consumers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sugar-Free Confectionery

NAICS

Sugar and Confectionery Product Manufacturing (3113), Confectionery Manufacturing from Purchased Chocolate (311352), Nonchocolate Confectionery Manufacturing (311340)

SIC

Sugar & Confectionery Products (2060)

akta.pro primary industry

Sugar Confectionery (Gummies, Hard Candy, Chews) (CRADABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Natural High-Intensity Sweeteners (Stevia, Monk Fruit, Thaumatin) (AFAJAAAH), Sugar Alcohols / Polyols (Erythritol, Xylitol, Sorbitol, Maltitol, Isomalt) (AFAJAAAJ), Rare Sugars (Allulose, Tagatose, Isomaltulose/Palatinose) (AFAJAAAK), Fruit Snacks & Dried Fruit (CRADABAJ)

Keywords

• Sugar-free confectionery
• No-sugar-added chocolate
• Better-for-you candy
• Stevia-sweetened chocolate
• Gluten-free snacks

Headquarters

HQ city

Boulder

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Consumer Packaged Goods - Confectionery: Lily's generates revenue through the sale of chocolate bars, baking chips, peanut butter cups, gummies, and caramels to retail consumers. Products are sold through grocery retailers, natural food stores, and e-commerce channels. Revenue is primarily one-time purchase transactions at retail point-of-sale with some e-commerce direct sales.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Lily's Sweets manufactures and sells no-sugar-added confectionery products, including chocolate style bars, baking chocolate (chips and bars), gummies, peanut butter cups, and chocolate-covered nuts and caramels. Products are sweetened with stevia extract and sugar alcohols such as erythritol, isomalt, and allulose, and are certified gluten-free, kosher, non-GMO verified, and made with Fair Trade certified cocoa. The brand is sold through national grocery chains, natural food retailers, and its own e-commerce website.

Product overview

LILY'S Sweets is a confectionery company specializing in chocolate and candy products sweetened without added sugar. The product portfolio centers on three main categories: Chocolate Style Bars (including Extra Dark, Milk, Hazelnut, Almond, and Salted Caramel varieties), Baking Chocolate products (chips and bars in Dark, Semi-Sweet, Milk, White, Espresso, and Salted Caramel flavors), and Gummy Treats (Gummy Bears and Sour Gummy Worms). Additional offerings include Peanut Butter Cups in both Dark and Milk Chocolate styles, Chocolate Covered Nuts (Almonds), and Chocolate Covered Caramels. All products use sugar substitutes such as stevia, erythritol, isomalt, and allulose to provide sweetness without added sugar, targeting health-conscious consumers and those managing sugar intake. The company was founded in 2010 and is currently owned by The Hershey Company.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• LILY'S Chocolate Style Bars Premium chocolate style bars in milk chocolate, dark chocolate, and extra dark varieties, sweetened with stevia and erythritol with no added sugar. Flavor range includes Sea Salt Extra Dark, Salted Caramel Milk, Creamy Milk, Almond Dark, Hazelnut Milk, and Crispy Rice Dark. Sold to retail consumers seeking indulgent chocolate without added sugar.
• LILY'S Baking Chocolate (Chips and Bars) Baking chocolate in chip and bar formats designed for melting and baking applications. Varieties include Dark Chocolate, Semi-Sweet, Milk Chocolate, White Chocolate, Salted Caramel, and Espresso baking chips. Targeted at home bakers and consumers seeking sugar-free baking ingredients.
• LILY'S Gummies Fruit-flavored gummy candies including Gummy Bears in Strawberry, Raspberry, Orange, and Lemon flavors, and Sour Gummy Worms in Tart Apple-Peach and Lemon-Raspberry varieties. Sweetened with allulose and soluble corn fiber, and certified gluten-free. Sold to health-conscious consumers seeking no-sugar-added chewy candy.
• LILY'S Peanut Butter Cups Chocolate style cups filled with peanut butter, available in Dark Chocolate Style and Milk Chocolate Style varieties. Sweetened without added sugar using stevia extract, targeting consumers seeking a no-sugar-added alternative to traditional peanut butter cups.
• LILY'S Dark Chocolate Style Covered Almonds Almonds enrobed in dark chocolate style coating with 55% cacao, sweetened without added sugar. Contains 2g net carbs per serving and is targeted at consumers seeking no-sugar-added chocolate-covered snacks.
• LILY'S Milk Chocolate Style Covered Caramels Creamy caramels covered in milk chocolate style coating with 36% cacao. Made with no added sugar using isomalt and stevia extract, marketed to consumers seeking sugar-free chocolate-covered caramels.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Lakanto: Lakanto makes monk fruit sweetener-based chocolates, baking chips, and syrups targeting keto and diabetic consumers, directly overlapping with Lily's no-sugar-added confectionery positioning and retail distribution in natural food channels.
• Hu Kitchen: Hu Kitchen (Hu Chocolate) is a direct competitor producing paleo and keto-friendly chocolate bars and baking chips sweetened without refined sugar, using similar stevia and monk fruit-based formulations and targeting the same health-conscious consumer segment as Lily's.
• Chocolove: Chocolove produces premium chocolate bars and baking products with a focus on quality ingredients and ethical sourcing, sharing Lily's premium chocolate bar format and similar retail distribution in natural and mainstream grocery.
• Justin's: Justin's (owned by Hormel) makes nut butter cups and better-for-you chocolate confections, directly competing with Lily's peanut butter cups and chocolate-covered nut SKUs in natural and mainstream retail.
• Endangered Species Chocolate: Endangered Species Chocolate produces ethical, fair trade chocolate bars with a portion of proceeds going to wildlife conservation, sharing Lily's ethical sourcing narrative and natural food retail channel presence.
• Alter Eco: Alter Eco makes organic, fair trade chocolate bars and truffles, overlapping with Lily's on Fair Trade USA certification, ethical sourcing positioning, and distribution in natural food retailers like Whole Foods and Sprouts.

Broad incumbents

• Russell Stover Chocolates: Russell Stover (owned by Lindt) is a mass-market chocolate confectionery brand offering boxed chocolates and seasonal assortments, sharing Lily's mass retail channel presence but with a traditional sugar-based product portfolio.
• Ghirardelli: Ghirardelli (owned by Lindt) is a premium chocolate brand with baking chips and bars, sharing shelf space with Lily's in baking chocolate but operating from a traditional full-sugar formulation base.

Regional players

• Strive Chocolate: Strive produces stevia-sweetened chocolate bars primarily distributed in the UK and European markets, comparable to Lily's in formulation philosophy and health positioning but not overlapping geographically.

Emerging players

• ChocoPerfection: ChocoPerfection makes low-carb, stevia-sweetened chocolate bars targeting keto and diabetic consumers, representing a smaller but directly overlapping niche competitor in the no-sugar-added chocolate segment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/LilysSweets
• Instagraminstagram.com/Lilys_Sweets
• TikToktiktok.com/@lilys_sweets
• Pinterestpinterest.com/lilyssweets
• Xx.com/LilysSweets

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Lily's Sweets