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Historic Austin Candy Maker Lammes Candies Announces Return Under New Ownership

Five months after announcing its closure, the 141-year-old Austin brand is bringing back its classic candies, with a broader relaunch planned for 2027

Lammes Candies’ longtime flagship store on Airport Boulevard opened in 1956.
Lammes Candies’ longtime flagship store on Airport Boulevard opened in 1956. (Photo courtesy of Lammes Candies)

Fort Worth-based Delightful Development Co. has acquired the brand in partnership with the Lamme family and will begin taking preorders for three of its best-known candies Tuesday, Sept. 29. Customers can order Texas Chewie Pecan Pralines, Longhorns and Sherbet Mints at lammes.com. The candy will ship nationwide beginning Nov. 1 in a final, limited run of Lammes’ original packaging.

In April, the Lamme family announced it would close the business, citing shifts in the marketplace and concerns about its long-term sustainability. At the time, the company said its Airport Boulevard store and website would remain open while supplies lasted. Delightful Development co-founders Craig Cavileer and Kayla Wilkie-Kinne contacted the family after the announcement. The family remains involved as the new owners bring back the company’s recipes and handcrafted candies.

“Our vision isn’t to change what Lammes Candies is known for,” Wilkie-Kinne said in a recent statement. “It’s to bring back the legacy recipes, traditions and heritage that made Lammes so special for 141 years.”

A collection of chocolates from Lammes Candies.
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A collection of chocolates from Lammes Candies. (Photo courtesy of Lammes Candies)
Lammes Candies’ Longhorns
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Lammes Candies’ Longhorns. (Photo courtesy of Lammes Candies)
Lammes Candies’ holiday Sherbet Mints
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Lammes Candies’ holiday Sherbet Mints. (Photo courtesy of Lammes Candies)
Lammes Candies’ spring Sherbet Mints.
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Lammes Candies’ spring Sherbet Mints. (Photo courtesy of Lammes Candies)

What’s next for Lammes Candies?

The first products available for preorder are Lammes’ holiday Sherbet Mints, chocolate, caramel and pecan Longhorns, and Texas Chewie Pecan Pralines. The pralines are made with Texas pecans using a recipe dating to 1892. Lammes’ Christmas and Easter Sherbet Mints will also be sold at select Cracker Barrel locations.

Austin creative company McGarrah Jessee, which has worked with Whataburger, Shiner Beer and YETI, is developing new packaging, a refreshed website and a social media strategy for a broader Lammes relaunch planned for spring 2027. The company said it will announce future restocks and new candies later.

Craig Cavileer and Kayla Wilkie-Kinne, co-founders of Delightful Development Co., stand outside the Lammes Candies store in Austin.
Craig Cavileer and Kayla Wilkie-Kinne, co-founders of Delightful Development Co., stand outside the Lammes Candies store in Austin. (Photo by Dixie Dixon Photography)

Founded on Congress Avenue in 1885, Lammes Candies remained family-owned for five generations. Its longtime factory and flagship store at 5330 Airport Blvd., which opened in 1956, became an Austin landmark with its candy cane pole and neon lamb sign. The company also operated a store in Round Rock. Founder William Wirt Lamme used the lamb in the branding to show customers how to pronounce his name.

Stay up to date with Lammes Candies at their website or on Instagram at @lammes1885.

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