Inside See’s Candies South San Francisco factory: See how they craft chocolates by hand

For chocolate lovers, stepping onto the floor of the See's Candies factory in South San Francisco is intoxicating.

The scent you whiff when opening those one-pound boxes of chocolate is in the air here, as workers process the 29 million or so pieces of candy that move through this location each year.

On a late October morning, the factory was already abuzz with the type of movement that comes with a busy time of year: Thanksgiving and Christmastime. Mixed in with the regular offerings of See's Candies, seasonal items were also being made, including a white-coated confection called the Egg Nog Truffle.

"It's between a science and art to make the candy," said plant manager Damian Gaytan, as he led the tour through the factory located on El Camino Real.

His point is well made in a single room, as machines and employees work together to create the holiday truffle. Here, candy enthusiasts can see the entire process of manufacturing a single piece from start to finish.

At its beginning, the inner portions of the truffle are delicately laid out onto lengthy belts that carry the nuggets through their various stages, from a couple of chocolate coatings to a cooling area.

By the end, the chocolates are completed with a simple poinsettia decoration added by hand, as it passes by a row of See's Candies workers. The process is easily recognizable from the famous "I Love Lucy" chocolate factory episode. (Comedienne Lucille Ball wrote that conveyor belt scene after training at See's Candies Los Angeles factory, according to company lore.)

The chocolate truffles at See's Candies inside the Stonestown Galleria on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017, in San Francisco, Calif. The chocolate truffles at See's Candies inside the Stonestown Galleria on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017, in San Francisco, Calif. Photo: Santiago Mejia, The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Santiago Mejia, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 7 Caption Close Inside See’s Candies South San Francisco factory: See how they craft chocolates by hand 1 / 7 Back to Gallery

Beyond the lines of factory-produced chocolates is See's Candies truly hidden secret weapon known as the Bon Bon Room.

"Everything that comes out of this room has been handmade," Gaytan says of the room, as he introduces the workers. "There is no machine. This is an art."

Workers in the Bon Bon Room generally rack up years of experience, and it shows. This is the room where each employee gently decorates, dips and swirls certain candies by hand to create a signature piece that is then sold to the public. Each piece of candy is under a deadline, as melted ingredients are kept at certain temperatures and workers move quickly to produce each piece.

"I would imagine that people would think that we're very automated," said Mary Estes, Senior Production Manager at See's. "But we are not cookie cutter. We make a lot of product by hand still.

"There's a lot of personal attention to our products," Estes continued. "The people that we have working here pay a lot of attention to the quality of our product and are concerned about what the consumers get in the end."

The company got its start from a single shop in Southern California in 1921, expanding to the Bay Area in 1936 and opening a kitchen in San Francisco at the corner of Market and Valencia streets. The South San Francisco factory later opened and now manufactures many of the truffles and cream-centered candies sold at the company's black-and-white checkerboard decorated shops. The company then became part of Berkshire Hathaway, Inc., owned by Warren Buffett in 1972, but has maintained its own ways of making its candies.

See's Candies is in a transition of sorts as the company is dealing with the fact that a portion of its 240 stores are situated within malls — which is a fading business model. For its new locations, the company is exploring outdoor malls and stand-alone locations, as well as outfitting its website for online sales, to keep up with competitors.

Quality and keeping a handmade element with See's Candies products are part of the company's credo that it is intent on keeping. The company gives itself a shortened production time to make its holiday items. Starting at about 55 days ahead of the actual holiday, the candies arrive at stores fresh and have a short shelf life, since the company does not use preservatives. Shifts at this time of year go around the clock, with one production team starting at the early hour of 4 a.m. The formula seems to work: The company is expected to make over $400 million in candy sales this year.

The fact that See's Candies has been able to keep many of the workers under its roof is a feat in itself, as Estes guessed that the average employment lasted over 20 years at its plants and shops. Estes herself said she's worked with the company for 38 years.

"I'm not really sure what the magic potion is, but there certainly is something here," Estes said. "I think it's generally a happy environment, people are generally invested in what they do here and concerned about the product that we make and making the best that they can possibly make for the public."