Cadbury Timeline

  • JOHN CADBURY OPENED BULL STREET SHOP

    JOHN CADBURY OPENED BULL STREET SHOP
    In 1824, John Cadbury opened a grocer's shop at 93 Bull Street, Birmingham. Among other things, he sold cocoa and drinking chocolate, which he prepared himself using a pestle and mortar. John's wares weren't just inspired by his tastes, they were driven by his beliefs. Tea, coffee, cocoa and drinking chocolate were seen as healthy, delicious alternatives to alcohol which Quakers deemed bad for society.
  • Period: to

    Cadbury Timespan

    History of Cadbury
  • JOHN CADBURY OPENS FACTORY IN CROOKED LANE

    JOHN CADBURY OPENS FACTORY IN CROOKED LANE
    The Cadbury manufacturing business was born in 1831, when John Cadbury decided to start producing on a commercial scale and bought a four-storey warehouse in nearby Crooked Lane.
  • THE RANGE EXPANDS

    THE RANGE EXPANDS
    By 1842 John Cadbury was selling no less than 16 varieties of drinking chocolate and 11 different cocoas! The earliest preserved price list shows that you could buy drinking chocolate in the form of both pressed cakes and powder. The chocolate varieties boasted titles like 'Churchman's Chocolate’, 'Spanish Chocolate’, and 'Fine Brown Chocolate’. Cocoa was sold as flakes, in powder and in nibs, and went by names including, 'Granulated Cocoa’, 'Iceland Moss’, 'Pearl’ and 'Homeopathic’.
  • THE BUSINESS MOVES TO BRIDGE STREET

    THE BUSINESS MOVES TO BRIDGE STREET
    In 1847, the Cadbury brothers' booming business moved into a new, larger factory in Bridge Street in the center of Birmingham. The new site had its own private canal spur, which linked the factory to the Birmingham Navigation Canal and from there to all the major ports in Britain.
  • FRY'S PRODUCE THE FIRST CHOCOLATE BAR

    FRY'S PRODUCE THE FIRST CHOCOLATE BAR
    18th century France produced pastilles (tablets) and bars, but it wasn't until Bristol company Fry & Son made a ‘chocolate delicieux a manger' in 1847 that the first bar of chocolate appeared, as we know it today. The first ever chocolate bar was made from a mixture of cocoa powder and sugar with a little of the melted cocoa butter that had been extracted from the beans. Shaped into blocks and bars, and poured over fruit-flavoured centres, this chocolate was a real breakthrough.
  • RICHARD AND GEORGE CADBURY TAKE CHARGE

    RICHARD AND GEORGE CADBURY TAKE CHARGE
    Johns health rapidly declined and he handed over all responsibilities to his sons Richard & George
  • AN INNOVATIVE PROCESSING TECHNIQUE IS INTRODUCED

    AN INNOVATIVE PROCESSING TECHNIQUE IS INTRODUCED
    The turning point for the Cadbury business was the introduction of a new processing technique, resulting in the 1866
  • CADBURY MAKES THEIR FIRST EASTER EGG

    CADBURY MAKES THEIR FIRST EASTER EGG
    The first Cadbury Easter egg was made in 1875. The earliest eggs were made with dark chocolate and had a smooth, plain surface.
  • FIRST MILK CHOCOLATE BAR

    FIRST MILK CHOCOLATE BAR
    In 1875, a Swiss manufacturer called Daniel Peter added milk to his recipe to make the first milk chocolate bar
  • ABOUT BOURNVILLE

    ABOUT BOURNVILLE
    When the Bridge Street factory became too small, George Cadbury had a new vision of the future.
  • CADBURY MILK CHOCOLATE IS LAUNCHE

    CADBURY MILK CHOCOLATE IS LAUNCHE
    When Cadbury started making Cocoa Essence they had lots of cocoa butter left over, so they used it to make bars of chocolate.
  • EARLY OUTDOOR AND PRESS ADVERTISING

    EARLY OUTDOOR AND PRESS ADVERTISING
    Cadbury produced some of the finest examples of posters and press advertisements during this period.
  • CADBURY DAIRY MILK IS LAUNCHED

    CADBURY DAIRY MILK IS LAUNCHED
    Swiss manufacturers were leading the field in milk chocolate, with much better products than their rivals
  • FIRST CADBURY LOGO COMMISSIONED

    FIRST CADBURY LOGO COMMISSIONED
    In 1905 William Cadbury commissioned the first Cadbury logo.
  • BOURNVILLE COCOA IS LAUNCHED

    BOURNVILLE COCOA IS LAUNCHED
    At first, Cadbury resisted creating an alkalised cocoa (a product made less bitter by adding harmless carbonate of potash). Finally they realized that alkalized cocoa was the future and created Bournville Cocoa.
  • BOURNVILLE CHOCOLATE IS LAUNCHED

    BOURNVILLE CHOCOLATE IS LAUNCHED
    Bournville chocolate was launched in 1908. It was named after the Bournville factory where it was made
  • FRY'S TURKISH DELIGHT IS LAUNCHED

    FRY'S TURKISH DELIGHT IS LAUNCHED
    J.S. Fry & Sons merged with Cadbury in 1919 but the name of the bar remains.
  • MILK TRAY IS LAUNCHED

    MILK TRAY IS LAUNCHED
    Boxes of chocolates had been produced at Cadbury since the 1860s, but they were expensive, sold in small quantities.
  • CADBURY PURCHASES FRY'S

    CADBURY PURCHASES FRY'S
    Cadbury bought Frys in 1919 and the company grew, producing delicious chocolate on a grand scale
  • CADBURY DAIRY MILK GOES PURPLE

    CADBURY DAIRY MILK GOES PURPLE
    At its launch in 1905, Cadbury Dairy Milk started out in pale mauve with red script, in a continental style 'parcel wrap.
  • FLAKE IS LAUNCHED

    FLAKE IS LAUNCHED
    The 'crumbliest flakiest chocolate' was first developed in 1920.
  • CADBURY SCRIPT LOGO FIRST APPEARS

    CADBURY SCRIPT LOGO FIRST APPEARS
    The Cadbury script logo, based on the signature of William Cadbury, appeared first on the transport fleet in 1921
  • INVESTMENT BEGINS IN CADBURY DAIRY MILK ADS

    INVESTMENT BEGINS IN CADBURY DAIRY MILK ADS
    A huge success from day one, Cadbury Dairy Milk first hit the shelves in 1905.
  • THE 'GLASS AND A HALF' SYMBOL IS INTRODUCED

    THE 'GLASS AND A HALF' SYMBOL IS INTRODUCED
    It was originally used in 1928 on press and posters, but since then it's been in TV ads and on wrapper designs where you can still see it till today.
  • CADBURY ROSES ARE LAUNCHED

    CADBURY ROSES ARE LAUNCHED
    Cadbury Roses were introduced to compete in the twist wrapped assortment market.
  • KING GEORGE VI AND QUEEN ELIZABETH VISIT BOURNVILLE

    KING GEORGE VI AND QUEEN ELIZABETH VISIT BOURNVILLE
    Bournville welcomes King George VI and Queen Elizabeth on a tour that formed part of the programme of their visit
  • SECOND WORLD WAR BEGINS

    SECOND WORLD WAR BEGINS
    During the War, rationing was enforced and raw materials were in short supply so it was a question of making do and concentrating on those products they were still able to produce.
  • POST WAR EXPANSION

    POST WAR EXPANSION
    Once the war ended, the company worked hard to restore business as usual
  • MILK TRAY BAR IS LAUNCHED

    MILK TRAY BAR IS LAUNCHED
    Imagine a box of Milk Tray Chocolates.
  • FUDGE IS LAUNCHED

    FUDGE IS LAUNCHED
    Launched in 1948, Fudge is most famous for its 1980s and early 1990s advertising jingle
  • Launched in India

    Launched in India
    Launched in India
  • Change in look for Cadbury India

    Change in look for Cadbury India
    Change in look for Cadbury India
  • FIRST CADBURY TV ADVERT

    FIRST CADBURY TV ADVERT
    Cadbury’s ad for drinking chocolate was one of 24 that were shown on ITV’s launch night.
  • THE MAKING OF A 50s CADBURY TV ADVERT

    THE MAKING OF A 50s CADBURY TV ADVERT
    Ever wondered how an early TV ad was made?
  • THE FIRST FLAKE GIRL APPEARS

    THE FIRST FLAKE GIRL APPEARS
    The first ad appeared in a 50-year series – the famous Cadbury Flake Girl.
  • CADBURY INDIA

    CADBURY INDIA
    Cadbury whole nut in India
  • SKIPPY IS LAUNCHED

    SKIPPY IS LAUNCHED
    The milk chocolate bar with a caramel and wafer centre launched in 1960, with the slogan ‘It’s got a crunch in the middle.
  • AZTEC BAR IS LAUNCHED

    AZTEC BAR IS LAUNCHED
    Made of milk chocolate, nougatine and caramel, the Aztec made a big impact on its launch in 1967.
  • THE FIRST MILK TRAY MAN AD

    THE FIRST MILK TRAY MAN AD
    Who could resist the hunky Milk Tray Man, who first delivered a box of chocolates in this year?
  • CADBURY MERGES WITH SCHWEPPES

    CADBURY MERGES WITH SCHWEPPES
    The merger happened after the new Cadbury Chairman, Adrian Cadbury, was approached by his opposite number
  • A DECADE OF SALES GROWTH

    A DECADE OF SALES GROWTH
    Many Cadbury brands - Flake, Cadbury Dairy Milk, Whole Nut and Fruit and Nut - saw vast increases in sales in the 1970s
  • CURLY WURLY IS LAUNCHED

    CURLY WURLY IS LAUNCHED
    Curly Wurly, made of chewy caramel covered in milk chocolate, first appeared in 1970. It’s evolved over the years -
  • OLD JAMAICA IS LAUNCHED

    OLD JAMAICA IS LAUNCHED
    Old Jamaica was a special blend of milk and plain chocolate with rum flavoured raisins.
  • CREME EGG IS LAUNCHED

    Cream-filled eggs first appeared back in 1923
  • Cadbury in India

    Cadbury in India
    Cadbury in India
  • WISPA IS LAUNCHED

    WISPA IS LAUNCHED
    Launched nationally in 1983 after a trial run in the North East of England,
  • BOOST IS LAUNCHED

    BOOST IS LAUNCHED
    Originally called Coconut Boost – a milk chocolate covered bar with a toasted coconut and caramel centre
  • INSPIRATIONS ARE LAUNCHED

    INSPIRATIONS ARE LAUNCHED
    Textured fruit flavoured centres covered in milk, white and dark chocolate.
  • CADBURY WORLD OPENS

    CADBURY WORLD OPENS
    Factory tours had always been popular but it was impossible to run a factory smoothly if it had thousands of visitors.
  • India iconic adv

    India iconic adv
    India iconic adv
  • CADBURY FUSE IS LAUNCHED

    CADBURY FUSE IS LAUNCHED
    Fuse exploded into the UK marketplace on ‘Fuesday’ 24th September 1996.
  • CADBURY HEROES LAUNCHED

    CADBURY HEROES LAUNCHED
    Cadbury Heroes started life as Cadbury Miniature Heroes in September 1999
  • Cadbury in year 2000

    Cadbury in year 2000
    Cadbury in year 2000
  • CADBURY SCHWEPPES BUYS ADAMS AND BECOMES THE WORLD'S LEADING CONFECTIONERY COMPANY

    CADBURY SCHWEPPES BUYS ADAMS AND BECOMES THE WORLD'S LEADING CONFECTIONERY COMPANY
    Cadbury Schweppes had the ambition to become the world’s leading confectionery company
  • THE GORILLA ADVERT PREMIERS

    THE GORILLA ADVERT PREMIERS
    Gorilla showed the eponymous primate enthusiastically playing the drums on the Phil Collins record 'In the Air'
  • CADBURY AND SCHWEPPES DEMERGE

    The two companies demerged to allow each to concentrate on its area of expertise.
  • CADBURY BECOMES PART OF KRAFT FOODS

    CADBURY BECOMES PART OF KRAFT FOODS
    Cadbury became part of Kraft Foods on the 2nd February 2010.
  • A PIECE OF BOURNVILLE HERITAGE IS RESTORED

    A PIECE OF BOURNVILLE HERITAGE IS RESTORED
    Cadbury invested £1 million in restoring the Men’s Pavilion in Bournville to provide employees with a new gym & fitness center.
  • THE CADBURY FOUNDATION TURNS 80

    THE CADBURY FOUNDATION TURNS 80
    June 19th 2015 marked 80 years of the Cadbury Foundation! In this year alone more than £600,000 was donated
  • Cadbury in India 2015

    Cadbury in India 2015
    Cadbury in India 2015
  • CADBURY WORLD CELEBRATES 25 YEARS

    CADBURY WORLD CELEBRATES 25 YEARS
    August 14th 2015 marked 25 years of choctastic fun at Bournville’s Cadbury World attraction,
  • Cadbury India 2020

    Cadbury India 2020
    Cadbury India 2020
  • Cadbury India 2021

    Cadbury India 2021
    Cadbury India 2021 recreate iconic adv
  • Cadbury starts e-Store 2022

    Cadbury starts e-Store 2022
    Cadbury starts e-Store 2022