Leva finds sweet spot by expanding Long Grove Confectionery

When Craig Leva was 21, he didn't have a penny in his pocket, but that didn't stop him from traveling to Israel, Europe and elsewhere.

With a study abroad program and a desire to travel, Leva covered the globe before getting married to Monette, raising four children and living in Highland Park.

Now, the president and owner of Long Grove Confectionery Co. in Long Grove and Buffalo Grove, returns to Israel with his wife to visit their daughter, who is living there before she goes to college, he said.

"But as busy as things have been, we still had a chance to visit France, the Canadian Rockies, Greece and Italy in the last few years," said Leva, 46.

Busy is the optimal word these days for Leva. In addition to the Long Grove business, he also owns Chicago-based Arway Confections Inc., which makes candies under private labels for stores and fundraisers. Both businesses have been in high gear in recent months.

"This is what I like to call the 'sweet spot' of the year, between Thanksgiving and Christmas, when the most candy is sold," he said.

This holiday season also heralds the first time that Long Grove candies are featured in 185 Jewel-Osco stores in the Chicago and suburban area. Long Grove Confectionery, founded in 1975, was acquired by Leva about 1 1/2 years ago when the legendary candy company was struggling.

Since finalizing the acquisition, he's been working almost nonstop to fill orders, adding more seasonal workers, and delivering record numbers of products, he said.

And to think candy was nowhere in his vocabulary years ago, except as a kid greedy to fill his Halloween bag, he said.

Leva said his parents had divorced and his mother later remarried the son of the owner of Arway. When Leva was job hunting, many local places said he needed business experience before they would hire him. And some job offers came from other states at a time when his girlfriend-now-wife wanted to stay in the Chicago area.

So his stepfather, who needed extra help at the company, suggested Leva work for him, get his business experience and then strike out on his own again. Leva agreed. But he began enjoying Arway so much, he never left. Leva then slowly bought into Arway starting in 2000 and eventually became the sole owner by 2009.

Arway hasn't been a household name to consumers, primarily because it supplies candies in bulk to stores and delis and even for fundraisers. But it had a good reputation in the candy industry, he said.

When he heard Long Grove Confectionery was having difficulties, he struck a deal to acquire it. He made some changes at Long Grove and it soon was turning a corner, he said.

This fall, he had a meeting with Jewel-Osco executives eager to find ways to beat the growing competition of grocers in the area. They wanted to offer unique, local products. Leva was already doing private label candies for Jewel, but this time the executives spotted his legendary Long Grove label. They struck a deal, and soon Leva was finding that he couldn't keep up with the demand. Customers were buying it quickly at the Jewels, despite other major label candies, such as Fannie May, that also were available.

The manufacturing part stepped up and more products were made. His Long Grove workforce grew from 100 core employees to about 250 with seasonal workers, and Arway's core 70 workers grew to 140 with seasonal workers, he said.

"It's going to be like this through January," Leva said. "We call it our endless rush for candy emergencies."

Radicom taps CEO

Robert L. Lueders Jr. of Hawthorn Woods will become the new president and CEO starting in January of Radicom Inc. in McHenry. He replaces longtime President and CEO Phillip E. Bartmann who retires this month. Lueders joined Radicom in August 2006 and served as executive vice president and chief operating officer.

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