This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Two Utah chocolate makers — Utah Truffles of Salt Lake City and Amber Lyn Chocolates of St. George — have merged their operations.
The combined business, which will operate under The Cacao Group name, will be based in the Salt Lake International Center on Amelia Earhart Drive. The merger is expected to generate revenue of more than $4 million a year, according to the company's management team.
Utah Truffles was founded in 1993 by Keith and Donna Cavanaugh. Shad Slaughter has served as the company's CEO for the past five years.
Amber Lyn Chocolates was founded by Lyman Peterson in 2001 and specializes in sugar-free Belgian chocolate products. Marc Purles has served as the company's president and CEO since 2008.
The Cacao Group's management team, which consists of Slaughter, Purles and Jake Cavanaugh, said the merger creates synergies that will be realized by combining manufacturing, accounting, sales and marketing functions.
They said the company has just finalized an agreement with Cold Stone to manufacture and market chocolates nationwide under the Cold Stone brand.