Contents:
| The Company |
Soon after their marriage in 1890, Violet and John Mackintosh opened a small business in a rented shop at 53 King Cross Street, Halifax, selling Violet's home-made cakes, pastries and tarts. John continued to work in the mill.
They soon discovered that the bulk of their trade was on a Saturday afternoon when people were not working, and they sought to find a product which people could eat throughout the week, even if they only bought it on the one day.
In 1890, Violet devised a recipe which combined the hard and brittle qualities of traditional English toffee – much like a butterscotch – with the softer caramel which had recently arrived from the USA. They called the result Mackintosh's Celebrated Toffee.
They moved from retail to wholesale selling in 1892, and production moved to a factory in Bond Street in 1894, and to larger premises in Hope Street, Halifax, in 1895 – the Steam Confectionery Works.
In 1898, the Company manufactured Christmas crackers.
In 1899, J. Mackintosh Limited, a limited liability company, was established.
In 1899, a new factory – Kingston Confectionery Works, Halifax – was built on Queens Road.
In 1904, the Company opened a factory in the USA.
In 1905, Mackintosh's Toffee Company (America) Limited is recorded with registered office at Hill Street, West Parade, Halifax.
In 1906, the Company opened a factory at Crefeld, near Cologne in Germany.
On 29th October 1909, the Kingston Confectionery Works, Halifax was destroyed by fire. Using the insurance money, production moved to larger premises at Albion Mills, an old mill which became the Company's headquarters.
On 13th June 1919, the Company held a Victory Ball at the Victoria Hall for those employees who had returned from the Great War.
In 1921, the Company was floated.
Around 1922, John Mackintosh Limited became John Mackintosh & Sons Limited.
In 1925, the Company acquired the North Kerry Manufacturing Company in Ireland. NKM Irish Cream toffee was introduced.
In 1929, the Company established Anglo-American Chewing Gum Limited, and began to manufacture chewing gum – sold from machines.
The Company started to manufacture chocolate products in 1932.
In 1932, the Company acquired the chocolate-manufacturing business of A. J. Caley & Son, Norwich. This led to the production of the Company's Milk Tray and Quality Street chocolate and toffee assortments.
In 1939, the Irish business of Rowntree and Mackintosh merged to become Allied Confectionery Manufacturers Limited, for the manufacture of chewing gum.
In 1946, the Company rebuilt the Norwich factory.
In April 1951, the Company bought J. & J. Baldwin's Bailey Hall mill which had originally been built by the Halifax Flour Society.
In 1964, the Company acquired liquorice-manufacturers Joseph Bellamy & Sons of Castleford.
In 1965, the Company acquired biscuit-manufacturers John Hill & Sons.
In 1965, the Company acquired Gainsborough Craftsmen Limited, designers of food processing machines.
In 1969, the Company took over Fox's Glacier Mints, the original shop in King Cross Street was demolished to make way for the new bypass.
In 1969, the Company merged with Rowntree's of York to become Rowntree-Mackintosh PLC.
In 1971, the Company acquired James Stedman Limited of Australia,
In 1971, the Company acquired the chocolate confectionery business of Chocolat-Menier SA of Paris.
In 1972, the Company signed an agreement with Fujiya Confectionery Company to supply the Japanese market.
In 1973, the Company acquired the business of Nuts Chocolade Fabriek BV of the Netherlands.
The Queens Road site closed in 1986. In 1999, it was converted into a business complex.
The name Mackintosh was dropped in 1987.
In June 1988, Nestlé paid £2·55 billion to acquire Rowntree-Mackintosh and the Company became the Nestlé Rowntree Division of Nestlé UK Limited
| The Products |
This was sold in a mixed bag of a number of flavours:
The name Toffee De Luxe was also used
The concept was based upon the sentimental comedy Quality
Street written by J. M. Barrie, and the product image
featured a lady – Miss Phoebe Throstle – and a
soldier – Major Valentine Brown.
The product is still popular and exported to over 100 countries.
The most popular item is the hazelnut in caramel wrapped in purple
foil.
In 1950, the brand was exported to the USA.
In October 2002, plans were announced to drop the image of the lady
and the soldier to update the product image.
Ho hum!
In the USA, these were produced under licence by The Hershey
Company [1969]
See Charles Bancroft, John Mackintosh & Sons Limited Memorial, Law Quarry, Southowram, Longley Farm, Norland and Herbert Webster
©
Malcolm Bull 2017 /
[email protected]
Revised 17:42 on 19th October 2017 / mmm1026 / 13