Lollipops hustle on Amazon costs US family candy business millions

Spangler, a 115-year-old family business that also makes candy canes and Sweethearts at its factory in Bryan, Ohio, says the Dum Dums racket has cost it millions of dollars in lost business and legal fees – real money for an enterprise of its size. — Spangler

Mitchell Owens recently discovered that mysterious entities were selling bulk orders of Dum Dums lollipops on Amazon for a couple of bucks less than the price charged by his company.

Owens, who runs ecommerce operations for Spangler Candy Co, was concerned the sweets could be potentially dangerous counterfeits. So he placed an order from one of the Amazon merchants.