Although Cadbury products can be found in the USA and Canada, these are made locally by Hershey and Neilson (respectively) who have franchise arrangements with Cadbury. For this reason, North American Cadbury labeled chocolates differ significantly from those made in Cadbury's own factories. Cadbury is also known in Australia as Cadbury Schweppes. This is why we feel the need to import items manufactured on Cadbury's own production line in Australia, as well as to offer Cadbury's Aussie range of delicious chocolates!
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Cadbury chocolates date back to 1824, the year that John Cadbury, aged 22, opened his shop in Birmingham, England. Initially, chocolate making was not Cadbury's main intention, as back then, cocoa and drinking chocolate were exclusively for the elite of English society and the wealthy. He sold hops, mustard, tea and coffee, amongst other things, but all the while he was experimenting with different cocoa and chocolate drinks, a whole range of which he soon offered. Cadbury had talent in marketing his products and it wasn't long before he became one of Birmingham's leading tradesmen. Known for his dedication to making 'superior quality' products, in 1831 the business converted from being a grocery shop, to manufacturing Cadbury drinking chocolate and cocoa.
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In 1847 John Cadbury partnered with his brother Benjamin, and they ran the manufacturing business together, until 1960 when the partnership ended. A year later in 1961, John Cadbury's sons Richard and George became the second pair of Cadbury brothers to run the company when their father retired due to failing health. John Cadbury lived until 1889, long enough to see his sons struggle for their first five years of management, but then develop new methods and ideas that ensured Cadbury's prosperity. New, larger factories were required due to Cadbury's growing size. The first plant dedicated to chocolate manufacture was still in Birmingham and employed 230 workers, but was left behind 32 years later in 1879 for a factory in Bournville which went on to employ 2600 workers by the end of the century.
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Today, Cadbury is most famous for it's Dairy Milk chocolate, however their first attempts at competing with French and Swiss milk chocolate producers (1897) didn't go very well. It was coarse, dry, and not sweet or creamy enough to appeal to public tastes. The challenge to make a superior milk chocolate was met after a lot of time and money was spent, and this resulted in the 1905 release of 'Cadbury's Dairy Milk', with a 'glass and a half of full cream milk in every half pound produced'. Dairy Milk is still basically the same as when it was first launched, as since the 1920's it has remained the brand leader; and with good reason!
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The first international order that Cadbury ever got came from their representative in Australia back in 1881. Following that, Cadbury's first factory outside of the United Kingdom was built in the city of Hobart, in Tasmania, Australia (1922). Cadbury has a long history in Australia and is a brand that many generations grew up loving! Every Aussie is familiar with the sweet creamy sensation of Cadbury's Dairy Milk.
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Having been a family run business for well over a hundred years, Cadbury finally restructured and went public in 1962. Since then it has merged with Schweppes and has become a world leader in the confectionery and soft drink industries. Today, Cadbury has factories worldwide, throughout Asia, Africa, Australia, New Zealand and of course the UK; although many countries still receive their Cadbury products directly from Bournville. Modern Cadbury may be a global corporation, but it still keeps quality as a main focus because it was with their dedication to quality that the Cadbury family created such a successful brand of chocolate that has been loved for over a century.
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