Our business success is steeped in history
Almost 100 years ago, in 1911, Frank Mars and his wife Ethel started making candy in their Tacoma, Washington, kitchen. Today, Mars, Incorporated, is still family-owned. It’s also the third-largest food company and one of the largest privately-held businesses in the world.
We’re extremely proud to be entirely family-owned. Why is this so important? It means that we’re completely in charge of driving our success and shaping our future. We have fewer restrictions than most companies. This gives our Associates the freedom to excel by being passionate, creative, innovative and daring. In short, allowing Associates to take chances.
We have always been a decentralized organization with a very small corporate center. We value local consumer knowledge and believe our Associates in the markets are best equipped to make the decisions to meet business needs and goals. This gives our Associates strong accountability and leadership opportunities throughout the business.