Jay and Lynn Noel, of New Palestine, are the proud owners of Abbott’s Candies, the oldest candy business in the state. The couple will share their wares at the Indiana Artisan Marketplace, taking place at the Indiana State Fairgrounds this weekend.
INDIANAPOLIS — Two candy companies with Hancock County ties will be among the “best of the best” this weekend in the Indiana Artisan Marketplace at the Indiana Fairgrounds.
Greenfield Chocolates and Abbott’s Candies, the latter of which is owned by a New Palestine couple, are among the artisans who have been selected to sell their wares at the prestigious event, which takes place April 2-3.
Each year, dozens of vendors gather under one roof to offer the best that Hoosier artisans have to offer, from food and wine to jewelry and artwork.
According to the Indiana Artisan organization, the annual spring marketplace is known as the state’s premier art and food experience, where visitors can “engage with artists, see their work, watch them create, taste their foods, sample their wines and buy the best in Hoosier craftsmanship.”
This is the 10th year for the Indiana Artisan show and the first to be held since 2019 before the expo took a two-year hiatus due to the COVID pandemic.
Local chocolatier Jayne Hoadley, owner of Greenfield Chocolates, can’t wait to gather once again with her fellow artisans.
“It is truly one of the — if not the most — beautiful art shows I’ve ever been to,” she said. “You have jewelry, pottery, woodworking. You have foods, you have wines, you have distilleries. It’s truly amazing,” said Hoadley, who plans on taking a wide variety of chocolates, caramels and other candies from her store, including handcrafted Easter treats.
“When you see our display at the show, it will be just like walking into our little store,” she said.
Jay Noel and his wife, Lynn, who own Abbott’s Candies, also plan to sell a wide variety of sweets at the show, including Easter candy made at their Hagerstown shop.
“Each year, we decorate Easter eggs in seven different flavors and put names on them. We have some (now grown) kids who have been coming to our store for 27 years, and every Easter they get a cream-filled egg with their name on it,” he said.
He and his wife are looking forward to introducing their candies to a whole new batch of potential customers from across the state.
“We ship our caramels all over the world. That’s what we’re really known for,” said Noel.
It’s a huge honor just to be invited to sell at the spring marketplace, he said, since only the “best of the best” as selected by the nonprofit artisan organization are invited to attend.
“I tell everybody that (the show) is the best $10 you’ll ever spend. There’s pottery, metal working, furniture, candy and wine. It’s Indiana artisans who are best in their category in the state of Indiana,” said Noel. “So if you want to find the best unique gifts for the holidays, for birthdays or anything like that, this is the place to come.”
Noel said both Abbott’s Candies and Greenfield Chocolates — which also goes by the name J. Evelyn Chocolates — are invited to attend because they each specialize in different things. Noel focuses mostly on caramels while Hoadley specializes in truffles, although she does a variety of caramels, too.
No matter if they craft fine art, jewelry, food or beverages, artisans are only invited to the marketplace by the Indiana Artisan organization, which selects vendors through a juried process among peers.
Noel recalled that when Abbott’s Candies first got involved in 2014, only 17 percent of those who were juried were invited in.
“When you are the best in your category in the state, that’s pretty much a feather in your cap. It’s a very specific group of people,” he said.
Hoadley has taken her J. Evelyn Chocolates each of the 10 years the spring marketplace has been held.
She spent this week setting up inside the fairgrounds’ Agriculture Horticulture Building, a new venue for the event this year.
“We used to be in the expo hall, but this new space is really nice. I think people are really going to like it,” she said.
While the food and wine offerings are amazing, Hoadley said the art vendors also offer up one-of-a-kind items that can’t be found anywhere else.
“The show truly runs the gamut of the arts,” she said. “You have water colors, pastels, oils. If you’re an art lover, this show is just not to be missed.”
While some artisans are first-time exhibitors, others have been selling their wares for generations.
Noel said Abbott’s Candies is the oldest candy company in Indiana, dating back to 1890 when founder William C. Abbott sought to create some of the finest candies around.
The business is headquartered in Hagerstown, on the far east end of the state.
The Noels of New Palestine entered the picture when they were licensed to open the first Abbott’s Candies retail shop — Abbott’s Also — on the northeast side of Indianapolis in 1993.
In 2012, the couple took over the business when they bought it from the founder’s granddaughter, Suanna Goodnight, who had previously run the business with her mother, Rhea, after both Goodnight’s father and brother had passed away.
Over the years, the Noels went on to open two more Abbott’s shops in the Indianapolis area, but only the one on the northeast side remains. The couple focuses the bulk of their time in running the business from the Hagerstown location, but they plan to retire soon, handing the business over to their oldest son, Jason Noel.
Their youngest son, Ryan Noel, oversees the company website and marketing from his home in Texas.
Abbott’s Candies continue to be sold in stores throughout the country and shipped to customers throughout the world, said Jay Noel.
“We’re proud to say that we continue to be a family-owned business,” he said.
