Our Story
Founded in 1969, Joy Lyn's Candies began in the home of Don and Joan Memmer. Don, a candy cook for the Helen Grace company in Southern California, in 1968 and found employment at the Post Office, but his love was really making candy. He began making chocolates in their home. The Memmers converted their patio to a candy kitchen and mini factory and named the company after the middle names of their two daughters.
Pam and Bill Hartley purchased Joy Lyn's Candies in 1999 and became the fourth owners of the business, still located in the converted home. Each owner has served as a tutor/mentor to the next, passing on the teaching recipes and techniques.
Bill Hartley says he traded his bullet-proof vest for an apron after spending 29 years as a police officer. The decades on the street took their toll and after undergoing neck surgery, Bill's doctor advised him not to return to the streets. Pam Hartley had also had her share of stress and burnout working for 15 years as an administrative secretary for the school district. When the candy business became available, the Hartley's thought it might be a good fit.
One new product the Hartleys have added to their line is Sierra Nevada Pale Ale beer brittle made with the popular beverage from a nearby brewery. The Hartleys are now wholesaling this beer brittle at the Sierra Nevada Brewery gift store. The brewers gave permission to use the ale's logo on Joy Lyn's Candies' bags of brittle. This brittle and its sidekick, jalapeno brittle have become quite popular at the Joy Lyn store and at local farmer's markets.
Passionate retailers, Bill and Pam are hard-pressed to choose their favorite confection. Their best-selling item is an assorted box of chocolates. "Although people love our honeycomb, divinity, English Toffee and specialty truffles, too," Pam said. The store stocks mostly in-ouse produced items, but also offers items from major firms such as Jelly Belly Asher's, Gertrude Hawk, Madelaine's, Kencraft and Hammond's.
The shop is open October through May, avoiding the warmest weather in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
