Tootsie Roll Corporation Everyone Knows That Iconic

Tootsie Roll Corporation Everyone knows that iconic brand. It is the Tootsie Roll, one of America's favorite chocolate candies. The company was originally started in 1890 by Leo Hirshfield, making the company over 116 years old (Kesling, 2012). Throughout its long history, there have been little changes to the classic recipes. Yet, is it time foe a change? With Halloween rapidly approaching, Tootsie Roll is in good form. This time of year is when the company generates some of its highest profit margins.

Overall, the company is in good shape most of the year as is. However, recent years have shown slight dips in overall profit potentials. The year 2011 saw overall revenue of $528.4 million with a total profit of $43.9 million (Kesling, 2012). Still, the company's stock looks to be on the rise since late 2012 (The Motley Fool, 2013). Yet, it is time for the company to look into redesigning some of its classic flare in order to stay relevant in a changing candy market.

Research Problem Thanks to public speakers like Michele Obama, childhood obesity is becoming a major issue in today's society. According to the research, "obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduced life expectancy and/or increased health problems" ( Campos, 2011).

It is a tough subject, especially when children are concerned because in a lot of cases they are not making healthy eating choices and thus are endangering themselves for the rest of their lives. Millions of kids around the world are now fighting the battle of their lives, and unfortunately candies like Tootsie Roll are just making that fight that much harder to win. It is time for a change. Tootsie Roll has seen little change in the hundred or so years they have been operating.

In fact, "decades of acquisitions have given Tootsie Roll a product gallery of mostly antique -- though profitable -- candy brands" (Kesling, 2012). Yet, the times are changing dramatically. In this day in age, it is clear that there needs to be alternatives on the market to help prevent obesity from getting even more out of hand Recent years have witnessed "shrinking profit margins" (Kesling, 2012).

Other candy brands have focused on launching sugar-free alternatives as a way to help contribute to growing awareness about obesity, but also to capitalize in a growing niche market. Tootsie Roll must look into this new, emerging market. There are a number of big questions raised, however, when considering how to move into providing sugar free substitutes. There are a lot of potential sweeteners that can be used instead of sugar. For example, Stevia is a sugar substitute that is often underutilized, especially in the candy market.

Tootsie Roll may be able to utilize this substitute to its advantage and begin adapting to a changing market. Research Purpose The primary purpose of this research is to find a progressive solution, where children can still enjoy their favorite snack with less worry about the health issues associated.