On a family vacation to Hershey park this week, it suddenly hit me- this company has had success in both the amusement park and hospitality industry AND the candy industry. Conventional business theory tells over and over again to “stick to your core competency.” We’re told to review our product lines and expand based on our current offerings. According to almost every business theory out there, a candy company expanding into the amusement park and later hospitality industry would be an absolutely ludicrous idea. But it worked.

The wild success in both of their chosen industries stems largely from their unique ability to brand. They know their audience- young children with a sweet tooth, and the parents who buy them candy to satisfy that sweets craving. Hershey Park was originally built as a leisure park for Hershey employees, but upon opening to the general public, they made sure to market all of their products towards their target market. Everywhere you go at Hershey Park you see the life-sized Reese’s and Hershey’s bar characters waving you on to your next ride. You see shops upon shops filled with Hershey candies. As if this wasn’t branding enough, as you walk into and out of the park, the smell of melted chocolate wafts through the air from Hershey’s Chocolate World, a huge factory-like attraction which, of course, is open for tours complete with product samples, rides, shows, and more.

What ancillary products could you offer that conventional business wisdom might say to stay away from? How can you bring this lesson on the importance of corporate branding- on all of your products- into your organization?