MmmmShop

New for chocoholics: Four stories, 26,000 square feet, dedicated to those colorful little candy-coated wonders--M&M;’s. M&M;’s World in Las Vegas, on the Strip next to the MGM Grand, is a retail monument, with nothing but candy and M&M;’s accessories, from the requisite logo mugs to leather jackets, bustiers, and $2,000 designer dresses. There’s even a custom-made vinyl sofa for $7,500 that looks like a bag of peanut M&M;’s.

To those who think a single candy is not deserving of an entire store--well, to heck with you. M&M;’s are coveted by the most discerning chocolate lovers and steeped in myth and lore. Van Halen not only demanded bowls of M&M;’s backstage, but the brown ones had to be picked out. And what about the rumor that the green ones are aphrodisiacs?

It makes perfect sense that these little guys would be cut loose and given their own place. Their popularity has been fueled recently by a series of commercials featuring animated M&M;’s.

“When we walk around the store we notice that people identify with the colors,” says Mars Inc. spokeswoman Karen Thomson. “People who like Yellow like his shy, quiet manner. Red is frank and has a lot of authority and ego, but at the same time, he’s a nice guy.

“Right now the popularity of the M&M;’s characters is very high,” she says. “It’s chocolate candy fun, and the store fits in with the colors of Las Vegas.”

Chocolate candy fun. It’s a beautiful thing.