The chaos caused by President Trump’s tariffs has been a sour candy to swallow for a sweet shop from the scion of the famed Zabar family, Side Dish has learned.
Sasha Zabar, whose grandfather opened the upscale grocery store on the Upper West nearly a century ago, will open a candy store on the Upper East Side on Thursday.
But opening Glace Candy, located next door to the 34-year-old sugar maven’s viral hit ice cream and hot chocolate flagship shop Glace, was marred by uncertainty because of Trump’s trade war.
“There has been a definite price change on ingredients, packaging and more. It feels like we got hit just before we opened,” Zabar told Side Dish.
“I’m eating the cost, not building it into the retail price.”
Trump announced universal tariffs of 10% and stiffer reciprocal taxes on April 2, before pausing the heavier levies for 90 days.
Much of Glace Candy’s offerings are from European countries like Sweden, as well as Japan. Some shipments he bought before new tariffs kicked in — and the prices changed while they were in the middle of the ocean, Zabar said.
So he decided to wait before ordering more. But waiting meant a change in the weather — and that meant he could no longer ship the candy.
“We missed the cool window for shipping and had to air freight, which tripled our costs,” Zabar said.
Zabar has also opted to skip custom packaging from China because of tariff uncertainties, before the two nations reached a truce on Monday. His orders were too small for custom factories in the US
“There isn’t much manufacturing capacity for small, custom packaging in the US,” Zabar said, adding that China, Vietnam and India are better equipped.
He’s now looking at cheaper, newer options in Dubai and elsewhere in the Middle East — but he can’t order without seeing the quality.
“I haven’t changed retail prices so far, but we’ll see. If we can’t find cost savings elsewhere, at some point we’ll have to,” Zabar said.
Even before tariffs, “chocolate and eggs were going through the roof,” he added, while costs for items like molds from France also increased 10% thanks to tariffs.
“At the end of the day, the tariffs were a big threat and a big worry, but they didn’t add to our costs as much as the uncertainty, which delayed our decision making.”
Glace Candy, at 1266 Madison Ave, will offer candies and sweet treats, as well as homemade gummy and sour candies, inspired by his favorite childhood candy spot, Millionaire Deli, which was in the space that Glace currently occupies.
The colorful concoctions in the shop’s bins are from Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain, France, Canada, USA and Turkey. Zabar is charging $19 a pound for all bin candies.
They include Zabar’s personal creations, like small-batch chocolates, sour gummies and fruit candies sourced with ingredients from local farms, as well as marshmallow creations based on Glace’s hit S’mores Hot Chocolate Marshmallow Halo.
The prices are comparable other high-quality candy shops pricey imported goodies like Bon Bon, which charges $19.50 a pound, Little Sweet Treat ($19.40) and Dylan’s Candy Bar ($19).
The Glace Candy space has a separate entrance but is connected inside through an arched path to Glace. Both shops were designed by Faber/Hughes.
Shoppers can also choose their favorite candies and have them mixed into ice creams and sorbets like Brown Butter Vanilla, Creme Brulee and Meyer Lemon for an even more personalized, interactive experience.
Glace isn’t cheap — $7.50 for one scoop, $10 for two scoops, $8 for soft serve and $12 sundaes — but it is still accessible, Zabar said.
Let’s hope it stays that way.
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