Vern's Toffee House was founded in 1976 by Vern Hackbarth and his wife Gert. Vern, who was then 59, had spent a lifetime in the food business capped by operating his own popular restaurant in Fort Collins, Colorado for many years. Having sold the restaurant to retire, he soon grew restless and began to experiment in making almond toffee with a partner, but the partnership quickly dissolved. Then in 1976, he perfected his toffee recipe and opened VERN'S TOFFEE HOUSE.

The business grew by word of mouth and it quickly became apparent that Vern's success would soon outstrip his ability to produce enough toffee to meet demand. Meanwhile, Vern's daughter Mary and her husband, Ron Hert, were pursuing their own careers. Mary was an executive assistant to a corporate CEO and Ron was a college educator who built and led several nationally recognized programs. As former Peace Corps Volunteers, they were accustomeed to risk-taking and individual initiative, so when Vern called for help, they couldn't resist the tempation to build a great family business.

In 1984, Mary and Ron joined Gert and Vern as 50% owners and set about learning the business under Vern's guidance. When Vern and Gert retired eight years later in 1992, Ron and Mary became full owners.