Stollwerck facts for kids
| Founded | 1839 in Cologne, Germany |
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| Founder | Franz Stollwerck |
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Stollwerck is a German company that makes delicious chocolate. It is based in Norderstedt, Germany. The company started way back in 1839. Over time, it grew very big, selling chocolate all over Europe and America. By 1900, it was the second largest chocolate maker in the United States! Stollwerck was owned by a company called Barry Callebaut from 2002 to 2011. Since October 2011, it has been part of the Belgian company Baronie Group.
Contents
The Sweet Story of Stollwerck
How it All Began
The Stollwerck story began in 1839 in Cologne, Germany. A baker named Franz Stollwerck started his business. He soon began making chocolate and other sweets. His cough drops were especially popular! In 1860, he started making chocolate, marzipan, and a type of cookie called printen.
Franz Stollwerck's business grew quickly in Germany. He even opened two coffee houses in Cologne. One of these later became a chocolate and candy factory in the 1860s. After Franz Stollwerck passed away in 1876, his sons took over. They had already started their own company, Gebrüder Stollwerck (Stollwerck Brothers), which then joined back with the original family business.
Growing Big with New Ideas
Franz Stollwerck's five sons helped the company become a huge international business. They opened factories in many countries. Ludwig Stollwerck, one of the brothers, was very important for bringing in new technology. He helped introduce the first vending machines in 1887!
At first, these machines sold small chocolate samples. But they became so popular that soon they were selling whole chocolate bars. By 1893, Stollwerck was selling its chocolate in 15,000 vending machines! The company even made separate businesses just to build vending machines. These machines sold not only chocolate but also cigarettes, matches, chewing gum, and soap. For the Budapest subway, which opened in 1896, a Stollwerck company made candy machines and even a ticket machine. By 1890, the Cologne factory alone had 1,500 workers.
Stollwerck also focused on selling its products to other countries. They opened companies in England, Belgium, and Austria-Hungary. In 1894, Stollwerck started a company in the USA called Volkmann, Stollwerck & Company. They made vending machines in their New York factory. By the early 1890s, there were over 4,000 Stollwerck vending machines in New York train stations. The company also became a top maker of cinematographs, which were early movie projectors.
By the early 1900s, Stollwerck had offices in many big cities like Berlin, London, and New York. They also bought other chocolate brands. Stollwerck was very proud of its many awards and titles, like "27 court diplomas" and "70 gold medals," which they used in their advertisements. The company's fast growth slowed down when World War I started in 1914.
Tough Times and New Beginnings
In the 1920s and 1930s, Stollwerck faced some difficult times. Buying other companies was expensive, and the worldwide economic problems of the Great Depression made things harder. The company had to be helped by a bank and was reorganized. This meant that the Stollwerck family no longer owned the company.
During World War II, it was hard to get cocoa and other ingredients. This made it very difficult for Stollwerck to make and sell chocolate.
After the War: Rebuilding and Growing Again
After World War II, many of Stollwerck's factories were damaged. Some of their machines were taken away as war payments. But the company started making chocolate again in 1949. They faced a lot of competition in the 1950s and 1960s.
In 1972, a businessman named Hans Imhoff bought Stollwerck. He helped the company become very successful again. Stollwerck started making chocolate in new factories in Germany and other countries. They even competed with famous brands like Sarotti. Over the next 30 years, Stollwerck became one of the biggest chocolate makers. They also bought other well-known brands like Sprengel and Chocolaterie Jacques.
In the 1970s, Stollwerck moved its main factory from Cologne to a new location. The city of Cologne helped with this move. After Germany was reunited, Stollwerck quickly invested in eastern Germany. They bought the Thuringian Chocolate Factory, which made the Rotstern brand and was the biggest chocolate producer in East Germany.
Stollwerck also opened a chocolate factory in Hungary in 1995 and became the top chocolate seller there. They had similar success in Poland and Russia.
In 1993, the Imhoff-Stollwerck chocolate museum was built in Cologne. It cost a lot of money to build! The museum shows items from Stollwerck's history. It also teaches visitors about how chocolate is made.
In 2001, Hans Imhoff retired. Stollwerck sold its businesses in Eastern Europe to a company called Kraft Foods.
In 2002, Stollwerck was sold to Barry Callebaut AG. This company is the largest chocolate company in the world. Barry Callebaut later stopped making chocolate at the original Cologne factory. Only office work stayed there.
In 2006, the chocolate museum changed its partner. Lindt & Sprüngli became the new partner instead of Barry Callebaut. The museum's name changed to Imhoff chocolate museum. Many Stollwerck items were removed from the exhibits.
In October 2011, Barry Callebaut sold Stollwerck to the Baronie Group from Belgium. At that time, Stollwerck had five factories in different countries. It had 1,700 employees and made about 100,000 tons of chocolate each year. In 2016, after 177 years, the remaining parts of the company moved from Cologne to Norderstedt.
Images for kids
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The Stollwerck Passage in Cologne, Germany
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Civic center Stollwerck, Cologne
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The Stollwerck factory in Stamford, Connecticut, 1907
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See also
- Imhoff-Schokoladenmuseum – the Cologne Chocolate Museum
- List of bean-to-bar chocolate manufacturers
