Pahrump’s FD Candy expands with a second location.

When it comes to satisfying a sweet tooth, Pahrump residents and visitors can always find something tempting at FD Candy, a local shop dedicated to freeze-dried and old-fashioned candies, dirty sodas, coffee creations, shakes and all kinds of handcrafted treats. And with the company recently expanding to a second location, it’s now even easier for people to pop in and pick up a little something to tantalize the tastebuds.

The grand opening and ribbon cutting for the second FD Candy shop took place earlier this month at the Pahrump Nugget, where the store has officially taken over the space formerly occupied by Pinkbox Donuts. Conveniently located in the center of town, the new store welcomed its first shoppers on Friday, October 16 and the owners, husband and wife team Tay and Colin McCarthy, were thrilled with the community’s response.

“The grand opening of our Nugget location was amazing!” Tay raved to the Pahrump Valley Times. “The turnout kind of took our breath away. We had tears of joy at moments. To go from just ‘Tay’, to ‘Tay and Colin’, to now us and a team of locals who are all part of this success story is something special that we will all share for a lifetime.”

FD Candy, as the name pays homage to, began as a small business selling freeze-dried candies but over the last four years, it has grown to include an array of delectable treats. Throughout the course of the grand opening, Tay and Colin were able to greet longtime patrons and friends and introduce new customers to their lineup of irresistible goodies.

“We have branded ourselves as FD Candy, Coffee, Soda and Shakes,” Colin detailed. “You’ll find nostalgic candy and the largest selection of freeze-dried candy in Nevada or the surrounding states - all freeze-dried right here in Pahrump. We have delicious ‘Frostitution’ cookies, a massive selection of shakes and malts, Dole soft-serve, custom dirty soda and energy drinks, Vietnamese coffee, Thai tea and Matcha. We even have date shakes made with China Ranch dates!”

“We all can see a candy or have a treat, that has the ability to send us back in time, to a core memory,” Tay added. “We hear it every single day – ‘I haven’t seen this since, insert date, back where I grew up in, insert place.’ That’s us! People are establishing that core memory with us. And people will be talking about us long after we are gone. It’s a real-life ‘time machine’ experience.”

Now residents of Pahrump, Tay is a Las Vegas native and Colin hails from Oregon. They initially got to know each other through the social media platform TikTok and the moment they met in person in December 2023, they got married. At the time, Tay had already started FD Candy, with her first experience selling freeze-dried treats at the 2022 Balloon Festival. She also hosted a regular booth at the Farmers Market at Tractor Supply but when she and Colin got married, they decided to go all-in on the candy venture.

“Together, we opened the doors of our first commercial manufacturing facility and connected brick and mortar store in July of 2024 here in Pahrump,” Tay explained. “Our new headquarters, commercial manufacturing facility and retail store opened in June of this year. This new facility is twice the size of the original and built so customers can watch our candy being made, packaged and brought out to the shelves for purchase.”

As to the expansion into the Pahrump Nugget, the McCarthys agreed that the location is ideal due to the high volume of foot-traffic, from Nugget employees, locals, tourists and those attending events at the casino.

“We were offered a front-row seat across from hotel check-in, allowing us to provide our treats and experience to regulars and visitors alike,” Colin enthused. “It’s the opportunity of a lifetime that one doesn’t say ‘no’ to. We are also part of the rewards program with Lakeside and the Pahrump Nugget, so players can redeem points for vouchers that can be used at our Nugget location.”

The second location may have only been open for a week and a half but FD Candy is not stopping there. The McCarthys are already eyeing another expansion in the future, with Tay concluding, “It’s a very exciting time to be us!”

FD Candy’s headquarters and manufacturing facility is located at 1240 E. State Street, suites 110 and 111. This location is open Sunday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. The Pahrump Nugget location is open Wednesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

For more information, visit FDCandy.com

Contact reporter Robin Hebrock at rhebrock@pvtimes.com