Mars Wrigley Cuts 307 Newark Jobs, Ends Six-Year Run at Ironside Headquarters

Mars Wrigley told New Jersey it's done. The company filed a WARN notice with the state on Friday, July 17, confirming it will cut 307 jobs at its Newark headquarters by mid-October, according to the NY Post and Fox Business. The office fully closes by December 2027, according to a company statement reported by re-nj and ConfectioneryNews.

The maker of M&M's, Snickers, Milky Way, Twix and Skittles is consolidating its North American operations into an expanded Chicago campus, where Mars already spent $100 million building out its global headquarters. The Wrigley side of the business has roots there going back to Mars' 2008 acquisition of the Chicago gum-maker, and the company doubled down last year by acquiring Kellanova, the Chicago-based Pringles and Cheez-It maker spun off from Kellogg.

Mars framed the move as a consolidation play, not a punishment of New Jersey. "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 said in a statement carried by Fox Business and re-nj. Mars added it's "committed to supporting" affected employees, including relocation opportunities, and says it remains "committed to the state," pointing to continued investment in its Hackettstown chocolate factory and innovation facility, which was recently updated.

That Hackettstown plant isn't going anywhere. Manufacturing jobs there are separate from the corporate headquarters function being cut, and none of the four sourced reports indicate the plant itself is at risk.

A Six-Year Homecoming, Cut Short

The Newark exit stings because of how recently Mars arrived with fanfare. According to re-nj, the office at 110 Edison Place has served as Mars' marketing and sales hub since about mid-2020, and the former Mars Wrigley announced in late 2017 it would move into Ironside Newark, a converted historic industrial building near Newark Penn Station and the Prudential Center. The state sweetened the deal with a 10-year, $31.5 million tax credit package. Re-nj reports Mars will now likely have to repay that credit given the shortened stay.

The irony runs deeper than a broken lease. Mars Inc. has called New Jersey home since 1940, when it opened its U.S. headquarters and first M&M's factory in Newark, according to re-nj. City officials celebrated the 2017 relocation to Ironside Newark as a literal homecoming for the candy giant. Now, roughly six years after moving into that space, that homecoming is ending, and Newark loses a marquee tenant that stood alongside PSE&G and Prudential in the city's downtown core.

Part of a Pattern, Not an Isolated Case

Mars isn't the only big name heading for the exits. Samsung Electronics America announced in late May it would relocate its headquarters to Texas after more than four decades in New Jersey, according to Fox Business, vacating an Englewood Cliffs office it had occupied for less than a year. The NY Post and Fox Business both note New Jersey has lost more than 9,700 jobs disclosed through WARN notices so far this year alone, according to the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA).

NJBIA CEO Michele Siekerka addressed the news directly. "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," she said, as quoted by the NY Post and Fox Business. "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."

New Jersey has among the highest corporate tax rates and regulatory costs in the country, and two major corporate headquarters departures in as many months is a real signal. The counterargument, which none of these reports from NJBIA critics directly rebut, is that Mars' move is driven primarily by consolidation economics tied to the Kellanova acquisition and existing Chicago infrastructure, not a flight from New Jersey's business climate specifically. Mars' own statement frames this as portfolio-wide footprint optimization, not a verdict on New Jersey.

A company can consolidate for real operational reasons while state tax and regulatory costs make the decision easier. Nothing in these sources proves which factor dominated Mars' internal calculus, and Mars has not detailed the specific cost comparison between keeping Newark and centralizing in Chicago.

What Happens Next

New Jersey officials haven't yet said publicly whether they'll seek to claw back the $31.5 million tax credit Mars received for the 2017 Ironside Newark deal, though re-nj notes that outcome is likely given the shortened commitment. The 307 Newark jobs are set to be eliminated by mid-October, with Mars offering relocation support to Chicago for affected employees. Whether most take that offer, or whether Newark absorbs another round of unemployed white-collar workers, remains an open question the WARN filing doesn't answer.