Mars Wrigley makes M&M's, Snickers, Twix, Skittles, and Milky Way - the stuff stuffed into Halloween bags and checkout lanes everywhere. But the company's U.S. headquarters is about to be just another empty office floor.
The confectionery company notified New Jersey via a WARN filing that 307 jobs would be cut at its Newark hub. Mars said the layoffs are part of a broader plan to shrink its office footprint and move corporate operations to Chicago. Affected employees will get relocation offers and support, but the message is clear: the Newark office is closing for good by the end of 2027.
Mars already spent $100 million expanding a facility in Chicago, and it bought the snack-food company Kellanova last year. Kellanova is based in Chicago, too. So the move is not exactly a surprise. Mars had already told employees it was shifting operations there, and now the formal job cuts are happening.
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This is not a one-off. The New Jersey Business & Industry Association, or NJBIA, noted that over 9,700 jobs have been lost through WARN notices in the state so far in 2026. That is a big number for a single year.
Samsung announced in June that it would move its corporate headquarters from New Jersey to Texas. ExxonMobil shareholders voted to change the company's state of incorporation from New Jersey to Texas as well. Michele Siekerka, CEO of the NJBIA, put it bluntly in a statement: "On a summer Friday when people should be getting excited about the weekend ahead, we are instead hit with the news of another unfortunate exodus of a job creator in New Jersey."
Siekerka added, "We need to wrap our arms around this and do something now that sends a message to our largest employers that things are going to change so we can stop this disturbing trend." Mars itself said in a statement: "Following a comprehensive review of our Mars Snacking North American office footprint, we will be sunsetting the Newark Market Hub for Mars Snacking Associates by December 2027, consistent with our previously communicated move to Chicago." The company added that the decision "is part of our broader strategy to position Mars Snacking for long-term growth and strengthen our operations in key locations across North America."
Corporate relocations like this one send a signal about which states are winning and losing the competition for business. When a major employer moves its headquarters, it usually means fewer local jobs, less tax revenue, and weaker demand for everything from office space to lunch spots. That can ripple into local real estate values and municipal budgets.
For investors, these moves are worth watching because they show where companies see lower costs and better talent pools and where they see the opposite. Chicago is gaining a candy giant. New Jersey is losing one.
The good news for Mars Wrigley workers? Some will relocate, and the company's manufacturing plant in Hackettstown, New Jersey, is staying put. But for anyone watching where the money flows next, the direction is pretty clear.
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