Newfangled Confections Acquires The Best Chocolate In Town

Indy’s Newfangled Confections, home of the popular Frittle candy, has acquired local chocolate company The Best Chocolate in Town. Elizabeth Garber, who founded The Best Chocolate in Town 21 years ago in Edinburgh, Indiana, closed the Mass Ave retail location on February 23, and will move chocolate production into the downtown headquarters of Carrie Abbott’s Newfangled Confections. Garber will serve in a consulting role during the transition.

It’s a full-circle moment for the two women, who first met 12 years ago when Abbott, then a student in the pastry-arts program at Ivy Tech, interned for Garber.

Abbott has no plans to open another retail location of The Best Chocolate in Town, but fans can still find favorites like the mixed truffle packs and peanut butter crunch at local shops including Homespun, A Taste of Indiana, Tasteful Times, and Silver in the City’s Carmel location. Abbott will also continue servicing The Best Chocolate in Town’s existing wholesale clients, and expand its reach into the vast network of national retailers who already carry Frittle, the signature candy from her Newfangled Confections line of products.

Carrie Abbott of Newfangled ConfectionsTony Valainis

“We really have wholesale nailed down,” says Abbott. “We’re able to offer The Best Chocolate in Town products into our existing program. Elizabeth worked so hard on creating her chocolate line, but didn’t have the capacity for national distribution because she was so focused on retail. Right away, we have 170 regional stores we can tap into.” In addition to the regional stores, Abbott has a presence in some of the biggest national retail chains in the country, including Target, Barnes & Noble, World Market, Fresh Thyme, Market District, JOANN Fabrics, and Murray’s Cheese Shop inside Kroger grocery stores. 

When asked how she feels about what this all means for her company, Abbott still seems in shock. “This is crazy. It’s so big for us,” she says. “We had Frittle for a long time, and we built Newfangled Confections as a parent company so we could expand our product line beyond that. This has been my dream, to have a line of gourmet confections as diverse as this in texture and look. I’ve always wanted to be your mini candy store within your favorite neighborhood retailer, and this is how we do it. I can’t believe it.”