How did Hershey’s Chocolate fall from grace?

Hello everyone, I’m Xiao Feiliang. A few days ago, while casually browsing the internet, I suddenly saw a trending topic: ‘Hershey’s Chocolate is gone?’ Although there are many chocolate brands both domestically and internationally, my impression of Hershey’s Chocolate remains quite vivid. Firstly, its teardrop-shaped packaging sets it apart from other chocolates—compact, individually wrapped, and highly portable: Meanwhile, Hershey’s slogan is also exceptionally well-crafted: ‘Small size, big flavor.’ Not only does it highlight the brand’s distinctive identity, but it also praises the taste. For me, another reason that drew me to Hershey’s Chocolate was this: Back then, the white ribbon on Hershey’s packaging bore printed messages. Enjoying one chocolate—and reading one heartwarming message—was one of my greatest pleasures at the time: Thus, beneath this trending topic, netizens expressed widespread regret: Although, after the story gained traction, Hershey’s issued an urgent official announcement clarifying that it has not abandoned the Chinese market and will not withdraw from China, many signs nonetheless indicate Hershey’s severe difficulties in China. On January 25th this year, the official WeChat account of Hershey’s Dessert Concept Store posted an article titled: ‘Hershey’s: Please Treat Our Chinese Distributors and Employees with Respect!’ The article urged readers not to overlook the hard work and dedication of distributors who had long labored to build the Hershey’s brand in China. The reason for publishing this post? Hershey’s had defaulted on payments owed to these domestic distributors—and consistently ignored their complaints. With no recourse left, the distributors resorted to public complaint via the WeChat account: According to Qichacha (a Chinese corporate information platform), Hershey’s (China) is involved in as many as 37 legal cases. Most involve sales contract disputes between former distributors and Hershey’s Company. Numerous former Hershey’s distributor companies have filed lawsuits against it. Source: Qichacha Moreover, Beijing Business Daily reporters found on TianYanCha (another corporate database) that Hershey’s Company entered liquidation proceedings on November 20, 2021. Online, Hershey’s Tmall flagship store ceased operations in January. Multiple best-selling items in Hershey’s JD.com self-operated store now show ‘out of stock.’ Even Hershey’s China headquarters has been virtually vacated—almost completely dismantled—leaving only the logo hanging on the wall: Source: Yicai News Notably, Hershey’s is an American company with over 120 years of history—a major chocolate manufacturer with substantial financial resources. Moreover, Hershey’s has operated in China for more than 30 years, continuously selling its own products domestically: So how did such a massive conglomerate—deeply entrenched in China for decades—end up in this predicament? It all began eight years ago. In 2014, Hershey’s invested a staggering $2.6 billion to acquire Jin Sihou, a domestic Chinese candy brand, aiming to penetrate China’s lower-tier markets. This deal marked Hershey’s largest overseas acquisition to date. Yet shortly after acquiring roughly 80% of Jin Sihou’s shares, Hershey’s first laid off Jin Sihou’s employees—and later clashed bitterly with its distributors.

Hershey Company: From a Small-Town Factory to a Global $10-Billion Snack Empire

Note: This article is the 43rd case study among 121 global food enterprise internationalization cases. At the end of this article, you may scan the QR code to download FBIF’s 410,000-word maritime guidebook, ‘121 Cases of Food Globalization and Overseas Expansion.’ The Hershey Company was founded in 1894 and is headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania, USA. It ranks among the world’s largest chocolate and snack manufacturers. The company is renowned for its iconic Hershey’s Milk Chocolate and Hershey’s Kisses, and its business spans chocolate, confectionery, savory snacks, and health-oriented snacks. In recent years, Hershey’s has expanded its product portfolio through multiple acquisitions—including Amplify Snack Brands and Pirate Brands—to enter the health-focused and plant-based snack markets. In 2023, the company reported revenue of approximately $11.165 billion. Hershey’s owns over 90 brands globally and promotes, sells, and distributes its products in around 80 countries. I. Origins: Milton Hershey’s Dream and the Birth of Hershey’s Chocolate 1894: A Subsidiary of Lancaster Caramel Company Hershey’s story traces back to 1894, when Milton S. Hershey—after several entrepreneurial failures—founded his candy company, the Lancaster Caramel Company, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Driven by passion for confectionery-making and fascination with dairy, Hershey began incorporating milk into his candies, an innovation that brought him tremendous success. Yet his ambitions extended further. Recognizing the potential of the chocolate market, Hershey established the Hershey Chocolate Company in 1894 as a subsidiary of Lancaster Caramel Company—launching his journey toward building a global chocolate empire. Early Innovation and Challenges Hershey quickly realized the complexity of chocolate manufacturing. To enable mass production, he built his own milk processing plant in 1896 and, through relentless experimentation, developed a stable, reproducible milk chocolate formula. At that time, chocolate remained a luxury item accessible only to the affluent. But Hershey aimed to make chocolate affordable for ordinary consumers through innovation. This vision materialized in 1900, when he launched the first Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bar—a delicious yet reasonably priced product that rapidly captured the market. II. Expansion and Innovation: The Birth of Hershey’s Iconic Chocolates 1907: Hershey’s Kisses In 1907, Hershey introduced another iconic product—Hershey’s Kisses. These small, bite-sized chocolates feature a distinctive conical shape and aluminum-foil wrapping. Initially, they were hand-wrapped.

Hershey Defeats Lawsuit Over Reese's Halloween Pumpkins Lacking 'Cool' Carvings

Sep 17, 2026

U.S. District Judge dismissed a class-action lawsuit against Hershey regarding Reese's Halloween pumpkins, ruling that plaintiffs lacked standing as the absence of carved designs was merely subjective disappointment covered by packaging disclaimers.

reuters

2026-09-17

Hershey Defeats Lawsuit Over Reese's Halloween Pumpkins Lacking 'Cool' Carvings

Hershey Defeats Lawsuit Over Reese's Halloween Pumpkins Lacking 'Cool' Carvings

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