Florida

Peter Behringer, owner of Sweet Pete’s, was raised in the chocolate industry. In 1985, when he was eleven years old, his mother opened a family chocolate business, which grew to encompass 32 locations and a large production facility. After college, Behringer applied his experience in the industry with an on-going education to further hone his chocolate and candy making expertise. In 2010, Behringer decided to strike out on his own and opened Sweet Pete’s candy shop, located in a whimsically decorated historic home. He quickly went to work, utilizing his confectionary expertise to make the majority of Sweet Pete’s candy by hand.

Peter’s scrumptious, colorful and handcrafted candies steadily gained attention and notoriety in the Jacksonville area. In 2014, Sweet Pete’s was featured on the CNBC hit reality seriesThe Profit, where entrepreneur Marcus Lemonis applies his capital and expertise to lead companies to success. Out of thousands of businesses, Lemonis chose to work with Sweet Pete’s, and a natural partnership flourished.

After appearing on The Profit, Sweet Pete’s opened a new Jacksonville location in the historic Seminole Club, a building that dates back to 1903. The notable location, which hosted a number of well-known visitors such as Presidents Teddy Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy, sat vacant for ten years until Sweet Pete’s and Lemonis renovated the property. This new confectionary emporium is a vast 23,000 sq. ft., making it one of the largest candy shops in the United States.

Today, Sweet Pete’s manufactures a line of handcrafted quality chocolates and sells over a thousand different types of candies. The new location boasts a fully functioning factory with an interactive gallery, two large retail areas, a full restaurant and bar, rooftop patio and dessert bar. Sweet Pete’s also features an event center that offers space for children’s field trips, catered events and parties. Peter also finds joy in sharing his expertise with others by teaching the art of candy making. The fun-filled educational environment includes Sweet Pete’s Sweet Science Classes, hands-on interactive candy making sessions and birthday parties. Sweet Pete’s is run by a group of naturally fun people who are committed to creating the Sweetest Destination on Earth.

We can’t wait to see what the team from Sweet Pete’s will be adding to our WasabiCon 2016 swag bags!!!