May 26, 2026
Maxx Chewning is a self-described “candy fanatic” who’s always looking for the next best thing. After decades of sampling sour candies, the entrepreneur and fitness YouTuber decided he could make something better. In 2019, he launched Sour Strips, with the tagline “sour candy that doesn’t suck.” He sold 20,000 units in the first hour and more than 1 million bags in the first year.
Known for its extreme sour flavor and resealable bag, Sour Strips has been a disruptor in the category. Thanks to a strong community of fans, it’s gone from being a small, scrappy online brand to a retail staple. In 2024, The Hershey Company acquired Sour Strips, expanding the brand’s reach even further. Chewning remains involved in the brand's marketing and innovation efforts.
In April, Chewning visited Hershey for the first time. I sat down with him to talk about what it’s been like to launch a brand that’s making waves in the candy aisle. He explained that his guiding principle was simple: if he created a candy that he loved, others would love it, too.
Here’s more from our conversation.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Susanne Prucha: You’ve built this brand with passion and found a way to connect with consumers in a very authentic way. What was the first big risk you took?
Maxx Chewning: It sounds cliché but just believing in myself. I never had experience in distribution or even CPG. But I didn't worry about all of the hurdles. I just really like candy and saw an opportunity for a new entry into the space.
Prucha: We talk a lot about disruptor brands that look for and seize an opportunity that just doesn't exist. What did you see as the opportunity?
Chewning: I never overanalyzed the market. It wasn't a big master plan. As a candy fanatic, I was always analyzing what's available in stores, and I was not as impressed as I felt like I could be. I thought there was room for improvement. So every decision I made was based on ‘What would I look for? What would I like?’ There were things I wished candy had, but I couldn’t find them.
Prucha: Somebody once said to me, when you go down the candy aisle, it looks like a rainbow threw up all over things. Your package is edgy and bold. How did you make some of these choices?
Chewning: One of our claims to fame is the viewing window. That’s something inspired by my childhood: I loved being able to see the product inside. I wanted consumers to be able to see what they’re getting in this bag.
With the coloring and the packaging, I felt like candy had always been targeted more towards the younger demographic, with happy little characters and cute little gummy bears. But I was 30 years old when I launched Sour Strips, and I still really like candy. I felt like there could be a brand that appeals to both the older and younger generations.
Prucha: The brand really blew up online, with a direct-to-consumer launch. What was that process like?
Chewning: I'd built a social media audience for seven years. When I launched it, they not only wanted to support me, but also trusted that, hey, if I’m really into candy, I probably know what a good product is. And so I was able to leverage my audience and launch it with a lot of hype, and it immediately took off.
And then the world got hit with COVID, and people were at home scrolling and ordering and stuff, and awareness went through the roof. When stores started opening up, they needed a way to bring customers back in. We had already built this huge awareness online, so retailers started reaching out directly to me.
Prucha: As the brand started to scale, how did you find ways to keep that authenticity?
Chewning: Everyone at our company was learning. No one had a huge amount of experience. When you have a team that just believes in what you're doing, you're able to carry the brand in an authentic way. Our audience understood that. They saw the passion, and because we're a young, hip, cool brand, we're able to pivot and make quick turns in branding and marketing. We're able to lean into trends and social media culture and meme culture. Our core value is to be a cool brand, and that’s not hard if you don't overanalyze it.
Prucha: How did you keep up your team’s momentum and morale while working such long hours?
Chewning: I don't know if we ever had time to think about that. I can't remember how many times I said, ‘I know that we are at the extreme of pushing the team, but this retailer wants 600,000 bags in three months.’ It was never ‘I don't know if I can do this.’ It was always, ‘Say yes and figure out how you get there.’ It was an adventure, every single day.
Want to taste what the hype is about? Learn more at sourstrips.com.