Traditions handed down with sticky fingers
The story of Littlejohn’s Candies begins in the 1920s. That’s when Mr. and Mrs. Littlejohn started making mouthwatering batches of English Toffee and selling them to the elite of Los Angeles. The business was a huge success and the Littlejohn’s name quickly became synonymous with high-quality confections.
When an opening became available at the World Famous Farmers Market in 1946, the Littlejohns moved their storefront and kitchen into the space it occupies to this day. By then, they were well known for their English Toffee so the name of the new shop became “Littlejohn’s English Toffee House.”
In those early days Mr. and Mrs. Littlejohn were very hands-on, passing on the craft of candy making to the apprentices who worked in the shop. One of these lucky fellows was Bill Bishop, who hailed from a candy-making family himself. Bill furthered his craft under the tutelage of the Littlejohns. As a teenager, Michael Graves, the current owner, apprenticed with Bill to begin a whole new generation of candy makers. After years of learning his craft through hands-on training, Michael continued his education at the Pulakos School for Candy Making in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Since then, Michael has passed on the candy-making tradition on to his brother, Christopher who helps create our delightful holiday treats. And soon, Michael’s two young sons, Ian and Charles, will begin spending their summers learning the family craft.
To this day, everyone in the Littlejohn’s kitchen proudly continues our commitment to quality and consistency—hand-stirring each batch over open flames, working it to perfection on marble tables and using only the freshest natural ingredients to create mouth-watering Fudge, English Toffee, Caramel and more.