Stollwerck
Chocolate with Cologne roots: started with cough drops in 1839, and by 1893 Stollwerck already had 15,000 vending machines selling chocolate.
Stollwerck GmbH is now headquartered in Norderstedt, but the company's story began in Cologne. After years under the ownership of Barry Callebaut AG, it was sold to the Belgian Baronie group in October 2011.
Auf einen Blick
- Type
- German food company, made famous by its chocolate production
- Founded
- 1839 in Cologne by Franz Stollwerck
- Legal form today
- GmbH
- First vending machines
- 1887
- Expansion by 1902
- Factories in Europe and America
- Location according to OpenStreetMap
- Westhoven district, Porz borough
In 1970, after a loss of about 7.8 million marks, the business magazine Capital named Stollwerck's management the "Failure of the Year"; in 1972 Hans Imhoff took over the company for a symbolic sum.
From Cough Drops to a Joint-Stock Company
It all began with a Cologne workshop making cough drops, which achieved its breakthrough in 1841. From 1860, chocolate, marzipan and Printen (spiced gingerbread) were added. In 1871, the firm Gebr. Stollwerck was established and helped advance industrial chocolate manufacturing. After the founder's death in 1876, his five sons ran the business. In 1902 it was converted into Gebr. Stollwerck A. G. to raise capital for further growth.
Chocolate from a Machine
Ludwig Stollwerck, the second-youngest of the brothers, was open to technical innovation. Six years after the first machines appeared, the company was selling chocolate through more than 15,000 vending machines. In New York, Volkmann, Stollwerck & Co., founded in 1894 with John Volkmann, built up its own machine production. For the Budapest subway, opened in 1896, the Vienna subsidiary supplied candy vending machines and a ticket machine. From 1895, Stollwerck was also active in the cinematograph business.
Crises and Restructuring
The rapid rise ended with the First World War in 1914. In 1928, Stollwerck took over the Hamburg factory of Kakao Compagnie Theodor Reichhardt and relocated it to Cologne. The global economic crisis, the costly acquisition of the Reichhardt group in 1930 and misguided investments pushed the company into financial difficulty. Deutsche Bank restructured it from 1930 to 1932 under Georg Solmssen and Karl Kimmich; almost all family members lost their roles in the firm, and bank debt fell from 5 to 2.3 million Reichsmarks.
Realignment and Brands
After war damage, expropriations abroad, the end of fixed chocolate prices in 1964 and competition from Mars and Ferrero, Stollwerck recorded a loss of around 7.8 million marks in 1970. Alfred Herrhausen chaired the supervisory board for a time. In 1972, Hans Imhoff took over the company for a symbolic sum. Over the following 30 years, brands such as Sprengel, Sarotti and the Chocolaterie Jacques in Eupen were added.
Today
By its own account, Stollwerck runs its own brands and, as a partner, develops chocolate products for other companies' brands. Its stated mission also includes securing the future of the supply chain and the people who work in it.
Timeline
- 1839Franz Stollwerck opens a cough drop factory in Cologne
- 1860Production expanded to chocolate, marzipan and Printen
- 1871Gebr. Stollwerck company founded
- 1887Stollwerck installs its first vending machines
- 1894Volkmann, Stollwerck & Co. founded in the USA
- 1902Conversion into the joint-stock company Gebr. Stollwerck A. G.
- 1972Hans Imhoff takes over Stollwerck and reorients the company
- 2011Sold by Barry Callebaut to the Baronie group
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Sources & links
- Official website (retrieved 2026-11-08)
- Wikidata (retrieved 2026-11-08)
- Wikipedia (retrieved 2026-11-08, rev 271627827)
Auto-generated, last verified: 2026-11-08
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