Blommer Chocolate Closing Downtown Chicago Factory After 85 Years Due to Falling Demand and Rising Costs

Blommer Chocolate is closing its 85-year-old downtown Chicago factory on May 31st due to plummeting sales, high maintenance costs, and reliability issues.

The closure will impact over 250 employees, some of whom will be offered jobs at other Blommer locations.

Parent company Fuji Oil Holdings reported $66.7 million in losses last quarter amid decreased chocolate demand.

Blommer plans to invest $100 million into its 3 remaining factories to increase efficiency and output.

A new Chicago R&D center will open this fall to support future product development.