Haigh's Chocolates is an Australian family owned bean-to-bar chocolate making company based in

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

. It was founded on 1 May 1915 by Alfred E. Haigh and now has retail outlets in

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

and

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

History

Alfred Ernest Haigh was born in 1877 in

. His first shop opened on 1 May 1915 at 34 King William Street and moved a few doors along to Beehive Corner in 1922 on Rundle Mall and King William Street. Upon Alfred Haigh's sudden death in 1933, his son, Claude Alfred Haigh became managing director until his retirement in 1959. The décor of the shop remains the same as when it first opened. John Haigh (Alfred's grandson) wanted to expand the chocolate making aspects of the business, and went to learn about chocolate manufacturing with

Lindt & Sprüngli Chocoladefabriken Lindt & Sprüngli AG, doing business as Lindt, is a Swiss chocolatier and confectionery company founded in 1845 and known for its chocolate truffles and chocolate bars, among other sweets. It is based in Kilchberg, Zürich, K ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

to bring new techniques back to Australia. John Haigh remained the managing director from 1959 to 1990. In the 1950s and 1960s, Haigh's chocolates were sold in cinemas by "Tray Girls" and "Tray Boys". When cinema attendance fell, Haigh ventured to

to expand his already popular business.

Corporate affairs

Chocolates stores

Haigh's Chocolates have seven stores in South Australia, three are located in the

Adelaide city centre Adelaide city centre () is the inner city locality of Adelaide, Greater Adelaide, the capital city of South Australia. It is known by locals simply as "the City" or "Town" to distinguish it from Greater Adelaide and from the City of Adelaide l ...

, including the Beehive Corner store in Rundle Mall, and

Adelaide Central Market The Adelaide Central Market is a major fresh produce market in Adelaide, South Australia. As one of the oldest markets in Australia, Adelaide Central Market has a large range of fresh food, including fruit and vegetables, meat and poultry, se ...

. The Visitor Centre store also conducts viewing tours of the Parkside factory site that is located behind the store. Melbourne has six Haigh's stores. Three are in the CBD, including a flagship store in the Block Arcade, while the newest store is on Elizabeth Street. There are also the suburban stores in Hawthorn, Eastland and

Toorak Toorak () is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Stonnington local government area. Toorak recorded a population of 12,817 at the 2021 census. The name ...

. There are six Haigh's stores in

in the

Queen Victoria Building The Queen Victoria Building (abbreviated as the QVB) is a heritage-listed late-19th-century building located at 429–481 George Street, Sydney, George Street in the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. D ...

, The Strand Arcade, Chatswood, Westfield Bondi Junction, Westfield Miranda and Castle Towers. There is also a store in the

Canberra Centre The Canberra Centre, also known by the longer name Canberra Shopping Centre, is a large shopping centre located in the northern section of the Civic, Australian Capital Territory, Canberra City Centre, Australian Capital Territory, Australia ...

. Since October 2014, Haigh's has also sold its chocolate range online. In December 2023, Haigh's Chocolates announced plans to open a new purpose-built factory in Salisbury South by late 2025. The 15,000m² facility is expected to allow production to double from 1,000 tonnes to 2,000 tonnes of chocolate per year.

Products

Haigh's produces a variety of chocolate-based

confectionery Confectionery is the Art (skill), art of making confections, or sweet foods. Confections are items that are rich in sugar and carbohydrates, although exact definitions are difficult. In general, however, confections are divided into two bro ...

, including regular chocolate bars, blocks, loose chocolates and a variety of seasonal and gift products.

Awards and recognitions

In 2022, the company received a consumer award at the South Australian Premier’s Food and Beverage Industry Awards.

Miscellaneous

Haigh's supports Alternative Communities Trade in

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (; ), is an island country in Melanesia located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, east o ...

(ACTIV), local chocolate-making company Aelan and local cocoa bean farmers from the region. The company has produced a single-origin Vanuatu chocolate bar through the cooperation.

Rabbits in Australia European rabbits (''Oryctolagus cuniculus'') were first introduced to Australia in the 18th century with the First Fleet, and later became widespread, because of Thomas Austin. Such wild rabbit populations are a serious mammalian pest and inva ...

, initially introduced to the continent by European settlers in the 1700s, have become an unwanted pest since the late 1800s, causing widespread environmental and economic damage, and expensive control measures. Since Easter 1993, Haigh's has sold a chocolate Easter Bilby as an alternative to the

Easter Bunny The Easter Bunny (also called the Easter Rabbit or Easter Hare) is a folkloric figure and symbol of Easter, depicted as a rabbit—sometimes dressed with clothes—bringing Easter eggs. Originating among German Lutherans, the "Easter Hare" origi ...

with part proceeds from sales being donated to the Foundation for Rabbit Free Australia.

References

External links

*{{Official website, https://www.haighschocolates.com.au/ Australian brands Australian chocolate companies Companies based in Adelaide Retail companies established in 1915 Australian companies established in 1915 Food and drink companies established in 1915 Family-owned companies of Australia Chocolateries Restaurants in South Australia