The year was 1961. John F Kennedy became our president, the civil rights movement began to gain footing, and hemlines started to rise worldwide. It was a time of new ideas and earth-shaking shifts that eventually changed the world. 

It was also the year Winans was officially born. In October of that year, with a nod to a family confectionery tradition that began in the early 1900s, Max and Dick Winans opened the doors of Winans Carriage House Candies. Offering ​​hardtack candies and hand-dipped chocolates, the brothers brought a little bit of sweetness and joy to the lives of people in Piqua, Ohio, that continued for decades. 

What Max and Dick started in 1961 has become a family legacy. When Max retired in the early 90s, his daughter Laurie and her husband Joe took the helm, adding small batch, house-roasted coffee to the Winans menu. Together they grew the business from one location in Piqua to multiple franchised regional locations throughout the state.  

In 2021, Max’s grandson Wilson Reiser assumed the role of Winans CEO, becoming the fifth generation of leadership. Today, Winans Coffee and Chocolate have 19 Ohio-based locations, has expanded its factory capabilities, and has added a 6,000-square-foot roastery facility, preparing the company for an ambitious vision of future expansion.

Creating Joy

At Winans, there are two things we do better than other coffee and chocolate companies: keeping it real and creating lots and lots of joy. 

Despite our growth, we still do things the old-school way, using real ingredients, copper kettles, and our very own hands to roll, mark and pack our confections. Our coffees are sourced from responsible growers worldwide, but they’re still roasted and packaged by hand. 

There are faster and easier ways to do things for sure, but at Winans, we believe quality and craft are more important than speed and a super-long shelf life. We create all Winans products with care and intention. They are genuinely hand-crafted because that is what makes the best possible product for our customers.